The path of the hunternin
by Narutoenthusiast
Summary: It comes a time in one's life when a decision has to be made, even if it's completely against what you wanted in the first place. After Asuma's death by Akatsuki, Uzumaki Naruto takes responsibility for what happened and makes a decision that would certainly benefit the entire village, even if he wasn't there to see it.
1. Taking the blame

**Summary: **It comes a time in life when a decision has to be made, even if it's against what you wanted. After Asuma's death from the hands of Akatsuki, Uzumaki Naruto makes a decision that will forever change his life as well as others around him. Using a mask, he leaves Konoha's quarters and start serving the hidden leaf village in a different way. (On this fic, Shikamaru's team doesn't go against Hidan and Kakuzu)

* * *

**Chapter 1 – Taking the blame**

It was sunny afternoon in Konoha and Uzumaki Naruto was training to perfect his new jutsu. After his training in order to master fuuton chakra, he was now trying to perfect the rasengan by incorporating fuuton chakra in it. Meanwhile, Kakashi was reading his precious and inseparable Icha Icha Tactics while watching the blonde in front of him, doing what his sensei, the fourth hokage failed to accomplish when he created the rasengan. The Forth Hokage, namely Namikaze Minato was the sole creator of the spiraling ball. However, few people knew that the rasengan was an incomplete jutsu. In order to perfect it, the ninja needed to add elemental chakra to it. Just like Kakashi's chidori which managed to fuse both chakra manipulation and lightning chakra, the rasengan, which was known to be the highest form of chakra manipulation, was created to the sole purpose of merging both chakra manipulation and elemental chakra.

Since Naruto had a fuuton affinity, he was trying to fuse his element with the rasengan with the aid of his clones, but failing miserably. Another factor that made possible for Naruto to improve on such technique was Yamato. Since the ex-Anbu has mokuton abilities, he had the ability of keeping the kyuubi's chakra from interfering with Naruto's chakra, making his control improve.

After several tries, Naruto slightly managed to add fuuton chakra at the rasengan, adding little sharp blades around the energy ball. "Kakashi-sensei, I can only go about this much yet." – Said Naruto to which Kakashi stopped reading his book and came to look at the rasengan, which now looked like a little shuriken was added to it. "Looks different, let's test it. I'll do the normal rasengan and we'll see what this new version does" – Said Kakashi, before making a normal rasengan and charge towards Naruto who in turn charged with his one. After the encounter, smoke came out of both Naruto and Kakashi's hands, however while Naruto stood still, Kakashi was holding his stomach from the deep cut caused by Naruto's technique. When Kakashi looked at Naruto's back, suddenly the figure of the Forth Hokage with his white robe appeared, making Kakashi's eyes go wide from the implication of such comparison. _'Naruto, only you can surpass the forth hokage. Keep like this and you'll be the one who finish sensei's work' _– Thought Kakashi as he got up and went to congratulate Naruto on adding fuuton chakra to the rasengan, even though he knew that the technique was far from mastered, being still room for improvement.

"Congratulations, Naruto. You made it. Although you still need to improve" – Said Kakashi smiling to Naruto who in turn scratched the back of his head and laughed back at Kakashi. "Thanks, Kakashi-sensei. Just a little more and I can finally reach Sasuke's level" – Said Naruto shooting his arms high, making Kakashi smile in recognition. However, Kakashi wasn't aware of the fact that the blonde's behavior was just a mask to hide his true self. When Naruto was a little boy, he was always mistreated by Konoha's population, just because of what was kept inside his body. However, one time when Naruto was eight, he was being chased by a couple of chunnins. He was terrified at the time, since he didn't know the reason as to why he was chased all the time. Since he couldn't outrun shinobi, the chunnins managed to catch him and started kicking him, while screaming obscenities linked with the word demon. Suddenly for some reason, Naruto smiled at the chunnin, even though he was drenched in blood, Naruto genuily smiled at them, making them stop kicking him and walk away.

Because of that, Naruto chose to be this loud and obnoxious attitude of his in hopes that people started acknowledging him as a human being, other than a demon. Even now after being able to protect himself in case someone decided to attack him, Naruto still chose to behave like an idiot, hiding his true nature. Back to his training, Kakashi was talking about further developing his technique when Izumo arrived at the scene together with Yamato. Upon seeing the pair, Kakashi was suspicious that something bad happened, but he couldn't put himself to figure out. However, he was sure that something really bad happened, from the looks of sadness displayed by both Izumo and Yamato. Suddenly, Yamato broke the sudden silence and delivered the bomb.

"Sarutobi Asuma is dead" – Said Yamato, making Kakashi's eyes go wide and Naruto to lose focus on his eyes and start remembering of his interactions with the deceased bearded shinobi. Kakashi, however, demanded to hear what happened to which Izumo said that his team consisted of Shikamaru, Kotetsu, Asuma and himself faced two Akatsukis and one of them killed Asuma. Upon hearing that, Naruto paled. One of his worst nightmares was that people died because of him or rather because of what he contains. Right now, Naruto was looking down in shame from hearing about people dying because of him which didn't go unnoticed by Kakashi, but he decided to let it go, since he figured that Naruto was taking the news just now and had to come in terms with what happened before moving on. Little did Kakashi know that right now Naruto had just dropped his mask. After delivering the news, Izumo left, leaving Kakashi Yamato and Naruto hanging there looking at the ground. Before Izumo left, he said that the funeral would be at five pm.

* * *

**--At Kurenai's apartment--**

Heading to the red-eyed Kunoichi's apartment, Shikamaru was to carry a message to her. However, he was new at this, since he never brought news such as this before to anyone ever in his life and not knowing how Kurenai would react, Shikamaru was afraid for who she carried inside her. Asuma told him right before he closed his eyes, that he and Kurenai were expecting a baby together and depending how she took the news, the baby could be lost as a result. However, he made a promise to Asuma as well as to the hokage that he would tell Kurenai about what happened.

Upon arrival, Shikamaru rang the bell to Kurenai's door before waiting for the kunoichi to open it. A couples of minutes after and a few more bell ringing courtesy of Shikamaru, Kurenai opened the door only to see Asuma's student with a serious yet down look on his face. Kurenai for her part was having bad feelings about the bearded shinobi and while in her line of work, death was a common occurrence, she could not admit the fact that Asuma would get killed while on a mission, considering the fact that he happens to be one of Konoha's elite jounins. However, upon seeing Shikamaru looking like that and the fact that he happen to be standing near her door, it could only mean that the issue involved her to some degree.

"Yes, Shikamaru?" – Said Kurenai before seeing the chunnin raise his face up to eye contact with the brunette who caught a glimpse of a single tear running down his face, just before he dropped the news that immediately killed her from the inside. "Kurenai-sensei….Asuma-sensei is dead" – Whispered Shikamaru, making Kurenai's pupils lose their focus and suddenly open tears starts to follow down her cheeks as she throw herself to the ground, screaming for Asuma's name in hopes that the bearded man suddenly appears and envelop her in a hug. Seeing this, Shikamaru kneel down as to comfort her the best way he could.

As Shikamaru heard the girl sob on his shoulder, Shikamaru just closed his eyes, while remembering his interactions with his sensei along the way from his genin exam until the day he died. Shikamaru often beat himself because of not thinking of a way to save his sensei's life, however being the analytical genius he was, he couldn't think of any solution to it. Not that it mattered anyway, since his sensei's life was now lost. However, as Kurenai stopped crying, his ear caught glimpse of the older girl whispering something. "Shikamaru, tell me….tell me what happened to my Asuma?" – Asked Kurenai to which Shikamaru started relating the story, while looking down. "We encountered two members of Akatsuki. After that, our team engaged against them, however even though we were able to hold them back a little bit, one of the member did some sort of spell using Asuma's blood, therefore transferring all the pain of his body to Asuma's. And without even slight of hesitation, the man known as Hidan took a long dagger and pierced his heart, transferring the blow to Asuma's body, killing him in the process." – Said Shikamaru before suddenly seeing Kurenai's eyes flash with anger, which made him wonder if the girl would hunt Akatsuki.

However, Kurenai wasn't thinking about Akatsuki at all. Well, not directly any way. The reason she was angry was the reason why those S-ranked missing-nins were near Konoha in the first place and then killing her beloved Asuma. She knew who those men were after and since emotion was clouding her judgment at the moment because of the shock of losing her husband, Kurenai was actually blaming Naruto for the death of the only man she ever loved. Come to think about it, Naruto was the sole reason as to why those monsters came to Fire Country and therefore he was the cause of Asuma's death.

Shikamaru, still oblivious to what Kurenai was thinking, only managed to see her turn her back to him and walk inside her apartment, slowly closing the door and giving him an understanding look, since she knew how Asuma cared for the Nara genius. Upon seeing this, Shikamaru turned and walked away towards his home where he was supposed to get dressed to the funeral. However, he couldn't get himself to attend to the funeral. Therefore, the only place he could go, the place where his memories laid regarding his sensei was his house's porch where he played Shougi with Asuma.

* * *

**--At the Nara residence--**

Upon arrival, Shikamaru simply placed the pieces and began playing by himself, oblivious to the fact that his father Nara Shikaku was watching his son since he arrived home. Shikaku was aware of Asuma's death on the hands of Akatsuki and was sad that Shikamaru had to witness his sensei get killed in front of him. However, death was a part of being a shinobi and therefore Shikamaru needed to come in terms with such facts, since the boy while smart, was still young in regards to experience. Back to Shikamaru, he just kept playing shougi, while the funeral was taking place at this moment.

* * *

**--At the funeral--**

Naruto, upon becoming aware of someone dying because of him was deeply hurt. He had swore some time ago in silence that the Kyuubi wouldn't cause any more pain to others ever again and that he would take care of that himself. Now, however, seeing that Asuma-sensei was killed because of the Kyuubi, Naruto was at loss of what to do. Because of his training, he didn't know of Tsunade's mission assignment to all available shinobis in order to search for the Akatsuki; therefore he couldn't stop her from sending others to their death. _And now Asuma was dead and for what? Akatsuki sure won't stop knocking at Konoha's door and I'm afraid they'll kill even more just to get to me. I can't let this continue. _

However, before doing what he was sought out to do, Naruto began to scan the funeral for familiar faces. Upon doing this, Naruto saw Tsunade, Shizune, Sakura, of course Asuma's team however without Shikamaru, which confused the blonde for a minute, but then again Naruto somehow understood the lazy chunnin. Growing up through pain and suffering, Naruto could sympathize with the lazy chunnin. Upon more scanning, Naruto located Konohamaru crying and went there to comfort him by hugging the little genin. At last, Naruto's eyes caught glimpse of Team 8's jounin sensei carrying a bouquet of roses in memory of Asuma. Upon further look, Naruto realized that Kurenai even though obviously sad for Asuma, was looking at him as if she wanted to kill the blonde. Naruto knew that look since it pretty much appeared on his life daily. That look came from all Konoha citizens who mistook him from the Kyuubi reincarnated. Nevertheless, this time Naruto looked down, but which was once disappointment and sadness, now was filled with shame and guilt, which didn't get unnoticed by the silver haired jounin who happen to stand near him together with Yamato.

Kakashi for his part was wondering what Naruto was thinking. He saw the look of guilt clearly and was afraid to even think that Naruto would consider himself to blame for what happened with Asuma and Akatsuki. However, Kakashi saw Naruto turn and walk towards Kurenai and now was found suspicious of the blonde's intentions. Naruto for his part, upon seeing the look displayed by Kurenai, turned to walk towards her with a single intention; he knew now that what happened was because of him and if he wasn't in Konoha or either from the hidden village, no one would have to suffer again. Upon arrival next to Kurenai, he noticed that the glare was intensified, therefore taking away any doubts he had on what he was about to do.

"Kurenai-san, I feel terribly sorry for what happened to Asuma-sensei. I…" – Started Naruto, but was cut off by Kurenai who chose this time to use Naruto as a scapegoat for all her negative feelings right now. "Sorry? You are sorry? IF it wasn't for your presence here, none of this would have happened. Konoha would be fine and I'd have Asuma here with me. Now tell me what part do you say you're sorry about?" – Screamed Kurenai once again in sobs, earning everyone's attention, including the Hokage, Shizune and the Rookie 9. Upon hearing this, Naruto looked down once again in shame and started talking with a voice that no one has ever heard coming out of the blonde's mouth. "You're right Kurenai-san. It's because of me that Asuma's dead and it's because of me that Konoha is at risk of attacks." – Said Naruto, making everyone flinch to hear the once flooded with happiness, sounded like someone who did a wide list of sins throughout his existence.

The others were literally taken aback because of Naruto's statement as was Kurenai who wasn't counting on Naruto actually taking the blame for what happened to Asuma. Tsunade, Shizune and Sakura were screaming for Naruto to take it back, since he wasn't to blame for something he didn't have any control over. Kakashi looked at the blonde with sadness from seeing Naruto like this and even more saddened to see Naruto taking the blame because of what's inside of him. However, he couldn't get himself to not look something odd to Naruto's new kind of behavior. From what Kakashi was seeing, Naruto's somewhat serious expression seemed to fit him, as strangely as that sound. _Naruto, I know what you're doing and while I won't dissuade you out of it, you are a grown up now and responsible for what you chose – _Thought Kakashi.

"Kurenai-san, I have a last favor to ask of you. Take this kunai and shove it in my heart; end your and everyone's misery right now." – Said Naruto, now abandoning his will to live, if it meant to rid the village of Kyuubi's burden, once again scaring everyone to their very core. Kurenai for once took the kunai and started looking at it and then to Naruto who by now was with his eyes closed, waiting for the finishing blow. Upon seeing the blonde submitting himself to her wish, Kurenai was in turmoil. She blamed him for what happened to Asuma and for as most as she wanted to avenge the bearded shinobi, she just couldn't put herself to do it. Therefore, Kurenai throw the kunai on the ground and ran towards her apartment for safety, leaving Naruto to pick the kunai that was to be aimed at his heart and end all the misery.

However, Naruto didn't even see the slap that hit his face. While not even carried with chakra, the slap was channeled with sadness and disappointment. When Naruto looked up, he met the eyes of Tsunade who upon seeing Naruto's eyes, which was once was ocean blue, so full of live, now was dark blue, filled with void and dread. Tsunade couldn't bring herself to open her mouth after such interaction. She was going to teach the brat not to waste his life like that; however upon seeing Naruto's face, Tsunade suddenly couldn't see the Naruto she once knew. Naruto for his part seeing that Tsunade wouldn't talk turned away towards the Hokage Monument. He knew that what he did scared a lot of people, but he knew that when he let the mask drop, people would be shocked to see the result of Naruto's real life. Striving for affection once, Naruto put up that mask so that people could see his smile and somehow be kind to him. Now, Naruto needed to take care of some things if he wanted to achieve what he intended to become. While still loyal to Konoha, Naruto felt that his presence inside the village would only destroy it in the long run.

* * *

**--At the Hokage Monument--**

After arrival on top of the Yondaime's head, Naruto seat and start looking at his favorite view of the village that was doomed to extinction, in case he chose not to proceed with what he planned to do. Suddenly, a soft gust of wind blew his hair away and somehow his face expression was at ease. He thanked the heavens for blessing him with a fuuton affinity, simply because he enjoyed its nature. The wind could be calm and peaceful at times, however without any warning; it could become strong and fearful, destroying everything in its path.

However when Naruto closed his eyes, he immediately regretted since he felt the damn fox driving him inside his mindscape for a little 'chat'. When Naruto opened his eyes, he came across a wide-grinned Kyuubi, which seemed somewhat amused by the whole situation. "**So, finally decided to let the mask drop, huh? Quite interesting, Naruto; although I'm quite surprised with the amount of time it took for you to do it"** – Said the nine-tailed fox to which Naruto looked down and gave his answer to the fox. "I thought that if I kept the mask, people wouldn't get hurt, however after seeing what happened, there isn't any purpose anymore."

"**Imbecile, your mask never had a purpose. On the contrary, it only made others look down at us. However, now that you realized that on your own, you can grow stronger now. It's time to show them what we're made of. You know what to do." – **Said Kyuubi, before seeing a nod from Naruto. The blonde knew how proud was the fox and also it unnerved him to see Naruto losing on purpose all the time, simply because he didn't want others to know that he didn't need help in order to defeat his opponents. Now, Naruto knew what he had to do and that meant getting stronger. Since his ninjutsu affinity was fuuton, he decided to head to the library and copy all fuuton jutsus he could find and learn them. He hoped that as his control over wind improved, the completion of the elemental rasengan would be much easier to complete. "**You only wasted your time with that mask of yours. Nevertheless, now that you realized your mistake, it's time for us to train our way. Since you're fused with me, that means you already have an affinity for fire as well. However, you must use my chakra in order to use katon attacks. In time, Naruto we'll manage to unite our affinities and then everyone will think twice before messing with us." – **Said Kyuubi, earning a nod and a smile from Naruto.

Seeing that his presence was no longer required inside his mindscape, Naruto closed his eyes and open them now to see Konoha from a certain distance. However, he wasn't alone. As he turned his head, he found that a certain silver haired jounin was there waiting for him while reading his book. "I see that you're awake. Had a good night sleep?" – Asked Kakashi, hoping to light the mood a little bit but to no avail. Naruto didn't even twitch his lips which concerned Kakashi deeply, since he couldn't recognize the blonde. "I was talking to an old acquaintance of mine, Kakashi-sensei. Is there something you wish to talk about?"

"Why did you take the blame for Asuma's death?" – Asked Kakashi out of the blue, since he somehow knew that Naruto wouldn't like having small talk. Naruto for his part knew that he would have to answer the question eventually and considering that Kakashi rarely used emotion as an argument, he would be perfect to hear his reasons. "Asuma died because of me, plain and simple. My presence here made Akatsuki chase me here. So it's only logical that I'm to blame for their presence here, therefore blamed for Asuma's death" – Said Naruto with emotionless voice, only pure rationality which made Kakashi look at his eyes for a few moments, as a way to gauge any hint of emotions. However, even with his wide experience at looking at the underneath of situations, in this case he was having trouble deciphering.

"So what's next now? Are you going to leave?" – Asked Kakashi after he stopped trying to access the situation. "Yes" – Answered Naruto, making Kakashi look down again at another one of his students who chose to defect the village, however his thoughts were cut short, since Naruto wasn't quite finished. "And before you wonder if I'm doing the same thing as Sasuke, don't. I'm loyal to Konoha, however I can't stay within these walls. I…well you're a smart guy, you'll figure out." – Said Naruto, lifting and turned back to back with his sensei who by this time already knew what Naruto intended to do. "You want to become a hunter-nin, aren't you?" – Asked Kakashi, though it was more like a statement than a question. "You're not strong enough to fend for yourself" – Stated Kakashi, using his last resort to convince him to stay, however to no avail since the blonde's mind was already settled. "That's for me to worry about. Not you." – Said Naruto before vanishing within a swirl of leaves, leaving Kakashi alone on top of his sensei's head. '_Ah Minato-sensei, he is as stubborn as I was, isn't he?'_

* * *

**--With Naruto--**

After leaving the monument, Naruto went towards the place he knew where all of the techniques would be located. Already packed with a couple of scrolls in order to copy all the fuuton ninjutsu and its theories, Naruto stopped right in front of the library. When he entered, he proceeded to look at the many shelves that happen to be packed with books and scrolls. After a while, he reached a roll with the word 'ninjutsu' in it and went along the roll in order to find the fuuton section.

Upon arrival, he came across the fuuton section, slightly disappointed to see that compared to other elements; fuuton was the least popular area of the library. Still he thought that would at least a dozen fuuton jutsus for him to use. Of course, Naruto intended to learn Katon ninjutsu as well, but since Kyuubi told him that it would teach him later on, he decided to focus entirely on fuuton. Quickly picking the scrolls, he positioned them on top of the tables near him and proceeded to copy all of them. As he passed through the named, he recognized the one called **Fuuton Daitoppa **(Wind Style: Great Breakthrough Jutsu) that the snake used on his team at the chunnin exams. After writing a bit, he came in contact with another familiar one called **Fuuton Kaze no Yaiba (**Wind Style: Wind Sword Jutsu). He remembered hearing something about Hayate's wound being cause by a sword made of wind.

After a while, he copied all of the fuuton jutsus, using the entire scrolls he had at his disposal. Wrapping it up, Naruto left the library carrying with him the scrolls with the information he gathered with fuuton ninjutsu. Calmly, he went home and went straight to bed, since he knew that tomorrow would be the day that he voiced his request to the Hokage and he was sure she would protest immensely.

* * *

**--The next day--**

One day later, Naruto woke up and immediately dressed up. He knew that Tsunade would begrudge him after his request, so he wanted to take care of it as soon as possible. However, he needed to do something else first. Even though he didn't quite agree with Kakashi' assessment of his abilities, Naruto knew that he would face eventually A and S ranked missing-nins, because of his chosen profession. So he needed to up his physical training as well. Being proficient in taijutsu was good enough, however the nine tailed fox told him to purchase a katana, since Kyuubi wanted to teach him some ancient kenjutsu style that was used by a strong samurai nearly five hundred years ago.

Therefore, he picked some cash that he kept inside his apartment from not trusting the bank and left his apartment towards a weapons shop he knew about that was located near his home. Upon walking, he noticed people staring at him like they were waiting for him to show his wide smile or something peculiar to his usual behavior. As people passed through him, he was more and more thinking that the damn fox was right and even cursing the fact that because of their link, the fox could hear his thoughts as well, making the beast laugh his ass off, unnerving Naruto a little bit.

* * *

**--At the weapons shop--**

After a while between walking and having to hear Kyuubi's way of saying 'I told you so' inside his head (more like laughing at him for being right the entire time). He gauged the place from outside a little bit and shrugged if off since he didn't care for appearance, in fact he knew that appearances were what made his life a living hell in the first place.

As he entered, he was astonished to see that the store could easily fill an army. Tons of different types of swords, kunai, exploding tags, shurikens and clothes; Naruto was at loss of words right now, however his attention was diverted when an old man made his presence known with a little throat clearance. "Welcome customer, can I get you anything?" – Asked the old man to which Naruto turned to study the man a little bit. The blonde was suspicious of the fact that the man was treating him like a normal customer, since it was clear that he knew what Naruto has inside of him. However, the old man was just looking at him like expecting a request soon so Naruto just shrugged it off for later and turned to give him the list. "Hi, uh, I'm looking for a set of training weights of 20 pounds each, two sets of kunai and shurikens and a katana." – Said Naruto, earning a surprised look from the old man.

"A katana, you say? Are you a ninja? I've never seen any shinobi wanting to purchase a katana. Not that I agree with those bastards, always preferring speed over force. However, I need to know what style do you intend to use, before I pick the right one for you." – Said the old man to which Naruto nodded and asked Kyuubi the name of the style. "Right, the name is **Houka Yakushin **(Fire Dash), but I don't know if you're familiar with…" – Said Naruto but stopped after seeing the man's eyes literally go out of his sockets just from hearing the name of the style. "Is there something wrong?" – Asked Naruto, making the old man recover his concentration and go to the back of the shop. "You wait right here. I have the perfect one for you" – Said the old man, getting a nod from the blonde who by now was asking questions to the fox. _'What was that all about?" – _Said Naruto only for Kyuubi to hear. "**The man was astonished simply because of such an ancient kenjutsu style. If I would guess, I'd say the man has a lot of knowledge regarding kenjutsu. This style will be perfect for you, since it uses the strength of the user not only offensive but defensive as well. With this style, you'll be able to defend attacks and disorient the attacker. However, before you start learning, you need to enhance your muscles, hence why you'll be using the weights at all times."** – Explained Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded when suddenly the old man appeared with a katana on his hands.

Upon inspection, he realized that the sword was quite heavy, being therefore perfect for what Kyuubi intended for him to learn. "As you managed to feel, this sword is pretty heavy. Your style focus on powerful hits, so this katana will be perfect for you; however in order to be well used in battle, you have to be more bulky than you are now, but since you'll be purchasing weights, I see that you already know that. Now, I gathered everything you requested." – Said the old man before telling the price from the purchase to which Naruto gladly bought. "Thanks for everything" – Said Naruto to which the old man shrugged it off. "Don't mention it, It's rather rare for shinobi to acquire katanas, it'd my pleasure if you would bring her here once in a while for repair and treatment" – Said the old man earning a question mark from Naruto. "Her?"

"Hahaha, sorry about that; I forgot to mention the sword's name. You see every sword has a name since a sword is like an extension of the user's body. This one is called **Furiseirei** (free spirit)." – Said the old man, receiving a nod as well as a smile from Naruto who in turn liked such a name. "I like that."

"What's your name son? I'd like to know the name of a customer who shares the same view as I do concerning katanas." – Asked the old man to which Naruto quickly responded by saying his name and waiting for him to say his own. "Nice to meet you Uzumaki Naruto, my name is Higurashi Akido" – Said the old man. After a while, Naruto said goodbye to the old man and returned home with the things he purchased, wondering where he knew that name from (I don't know Tenten's last name, so I put this one). Once he arrived home, he quickly placed it on his couch and left again towards the Hokage's office. On the way, Naruto was thinking of what Tsunade would say to him once he came with the news. The only one he ever told was Kakashi and Naruto couldn't know if the lazy jounin reported to the Hokage or not. Still seemed odd that he would be the one to appear and demonstrate concern to the blonde.

Perhaps the old hag sent him there in order to scout for some information as to why he did what he did. As Naruto walked, he also noticed that no one of his 'friends' if Naruto could say something like that, appeared to talk to him after what he did. He however shrugged it off seeing that actually it was for the best. He knew that Akatsuki wouldn't stop for nothing to get a hold of what's inside of him and that easily meant that they would kill everyone in Konoha if that was necessary to take Naruto with them. This way, Naruto wouldn't have to worry about seeing another one being killed by Akatsuki.

* * *

**--Meanwhile at Tsunade's office--**

Inside Tsunade's office, she, Kakashi and Jiraya was there talking about what the blonde told to Kakashi yesterday. The idea of transforming Naruto into a hunter-nin not only seemed absurd, but also it would be like handing him on a silver platter to Akatsuki. Tsunade, however, was remembering Naruto's face expression yesterday and it shocked her to very core. The idea of someone like Naruto literally give up on life was safe to say unimaginable, however Tsunade wasn't blind to the fact that ninjas creates mask as a way to cope with all the pain and sufferings they've been through and to think that Naruto wore such a mask would break her heart.

She always adored the boy, even though he somehow always got to her nerves. Naruto was to Tsunade what Nawaki was when he was alive. Tsunade viewed Naruto as an annoying younger brother and seeing him in such a state, it hurt her chest a lot. Right now, Jiraya was finding hard to believe that Naruto would behave like this and even if he had a mask, he knew that Naruto would always be Naruto, just with a little changes that's all. He as well was against the idea of turning to hunter-nin duty away from the village, since he knew that Akatsuki had some spies here in Konoha and it would be easy to know the kyuubi's whereabouts. Kakashi for his part didn't voice an opinion on that manner; he was simply here to tell them what Naruto told him and be on his way. He wouldn't like for Naruto to know that he broke his trust and ran to tell the Godaime Hokage.

However, Kakashi's plan went down the toilet when a knock was heard on the door. Slowly getting inside with his hands inside his pockets, Naruto entered and gauged the ones present with the Hokage. He saw Kakashi there which could mean that they already know what he planned to do and there was Jiraya. Speaking of the toad hermit, he was eyeing Naruto's face expression and found it peculiarly odd that the boy so far didn't show one single smile on his face; not even a twitch from his lips. Naruto's eyes were dark blue, quite different from the deep ocean blue ones that everyone seemed to be entranced with. Another different aspect was that Naruto chose to knock on the door before coming in when before he would just barge it in and make his presence known.

Tsunade looked at him and was sad to see that Naruto was still showing that look. That look that was only present when a person comes in terms with his haunted past and no longer tries to avoid it. And suddenly a realization dwelled inside her head, Naruto had acknowledged the Kyuubi. It was the only way he would take the blame for Asuma's death like that. Nevertheless, she needed to hear how he would address her so she could see if he still had hopes of snapping out of however trance he is on that made him think he was the nine-tailed fox. "What do you want brat?" – Asked Tsunade to which Jiraya and Kakashi shifted their gaze towards what Naruto would say. "Hokage-sama, I have a request to make." – Said Naruto, making Tsunade look down once again and the others look at their hokage with sympathy, since even though she always told him to address her with respect, inside she always smiled when Naruto called her 'baachan'. Both of them knew how Naruto and Tsunade were close to each other and seeing Naruto treat her like that was one of the deepest blow she received since Dan and Nawaki's death.

"And what request would that be?" – Asked Tsunade still looking down trying to hold her tears from falling. "Even though I suspect that you're already aware, since Kakashi is here; I wish to become a hunter-nin" – Said Naruto, making the lazy jounin snap at him so quickly, Kakashi himself thought he almost broke his neck. Even though Kakashi did tell them about Naruto's request before hand, he wasn't expecting for the blonde to be suspicious of him like that. A part of him was deeply hurt that his student wouldn't trust him, however the other part sighed since Naruto was right to be suspicious of him.

Nevertheless, Tsunade lifted her face to address who was now simply one of her genin requesting for a hunter-nin position. "Why would you want to become a hunter-nin Naruto? – Asked the Hokage to which the blonde asked right away. "A couple of reasons, actually; first Akatsuki is looking for me and they will do anything to get to me, therefore with me out of the village, they wouldn't come here; second I believe Konoha would be a better place without the demon walking around." – Said Naruto, however with little to no emotion which made Jiraya flinch after hearing the boy's somewhat icy tone, even more after considering himself the demon.

Seeing Tsunade not even trying to convince Naruto to stay, Jiraya moved to the Akatsuki argument. "Naruto, think about what you want. It Akatsuki knows that you're out of the village, they'll come for you. You're not ready yet to face them on your own. Also how long do you think it'll last before they know that you became a hunter-nin?" – Asked Jiraya, using it more as a statement, than a question. However, Naruto interpreted as a question and proceeded to relate his plan. "Well, Jiraya-sama (Jiraya flinched from the sudden respect coming from the boy), if you must know I've that already covered. First of all, I would request two month training in order to perfect mine and Kyuubi's affinities and then proceed to hunter-nin duty. Now regarding the information leaking, my plan is to give me a codename and hide the file deep within the Hokage's desk or even vault if necessary. With my identity being regarded as Shi (death), no one will know that it would be me and therefore no one will know of where I am." – Said Naruto before seeing everyone gasp upon hearing Naruto's plan.

All of them were impressed of Naruto's strategy and all of them realized that if they followed Naruto's plan, no one would sneak on the Hokage's office just to see Naruto's hunter-nin identity. However, while his plan was ingenious to say the least, both Jiraya and Tsunade suddenly remembered that they have to dissuade him of what he plans to do. "Naruto, think about this. What about your friends? They would be devastated to see you leave like this." – Said Tsunade.

"What's the point of hiding my identity, if I were to tell anyone else about it? The less they know about me, the better. Asuma's death awoke me to see that the longer I stay in Konoha, more people will be killed by Akatsuki, and therefore I plan to serve Konoha outside its borders while training to exhaustion and eliminate them for good." – Said Naruto, gaining understanding nods from everyone present in the room that happen to agree that if Naruto were to be a hunter-nin and also hide his identity, the less people who knew about it, the best.

However, there still remained the fact that the rookie 9 would ask questions about him and Tsunade very well knew about that. "Very well, Naruto. I see that your mind is set up for this. I will not dissuade you out of it. I'll also grant you two months of training and then I'll be sending your mask and an updated copy of our bingo book. Now, one more thing I should ask, since you pretty much thought of everything. What should I tell in case anyone asks about you, what should I say?" – Asked Tsunade to which Naruto turned to think a little bit. He wasn't considering that situation; however he didn't have much to think about it, since he had the perfect idea. "I doubt that anyone will ask about my whereabouts, so keep throwing solo missions for me. Tell them Jiraya here is training me in information gathering and tell them I'm meeting his spying network and introducing myself to them." – Explained Naruto to which Jiraya laughed a little bit, since he would eventually send the blonde to meet his spy network in the future.

"How long have you been planning all of this, Naruto? How the hell could you believe that it would be best for you to leave, huh?" – Screamed Tsunade at loss of what she should do, since Naruto had beaten all their arguments like they weren't worth even mentioning. "What can I say, two heads think better than one, I guess. Now, that I have clearance to do what I requested, I shall leave you be, Hokage-sama" – Said Naruto before turning and leaving through the door while all the people present were staring at his back.

After he closed the door, Tsunade scowled him for deliberately betting his life like that to which Jiraya sighed seeing that in fact this Naruto wasn't the Naruto he came to know. Also Jiraya was wondering about some of Naruto's words. He mentioned about mastering his and Kyuubi's affinity which was odd considering that not only Jiraya didn't teach him elemental ninjutsu, but also nobody knew what Kyuubi's affinity was. Also he said that two minds think better than one, so that must mean that the Kyuubi is aiding him in this quest. Jiraya now was at loss on what to think of this situation, however he would be a fool if he would sit around and miss Naruto and Kyuubi's idea of training.

* * *

**--With Naruto--**

Now walking straight to his apartment in order to study the theory behind the jutsus, Naruto started to ponder about his interaction with Tsunade and Jiraya in regards to becoming a hunter-nin. He actually felt it went well, despite the fact that Tsunade was visibly angry at him for requesting such a thing. **"Underestimation is one of the main reasons a powerful opponent loses his battle." – **Said Kyuubi pretty much answering Naruto's hidden questioning. "Yeah, look what happened to you, after you underestimated the Fourth Hokage." – Said Naruto, playing the with all mighty fox who by this time stopped trying to put some sense into Naruto's head about such a lousy mistake he made fifteen years ago. **"Quit trying to mock me, I'm serious. They underestimate your potential, therefore they think that we'll get killed easily" – **Said Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded.

Naruto's interaction with Kyuubi improved after six months of Jiraya's training trip. The beast at the time said that since their bodies were linked to each other for life that they should work together to stay alive (on Naruto's part) and satisfy Kyuubi's bloodlust ever once in a while. Actually the hunter-nin situation pleased the beast greatly since hunter-nins were supposed to kill missing-nins and bring any sort of proof to their kill like the enemy's hand or a very rare possession of his in order to identify his death.

"Well, first phase of the plan is in action." – Said Naruto to which Kyuubi nodded. **"Indeed"**


	2. Training for the job

**Chapter 2 – Training for the job**

After Naruto entered his apartment, he left the scrolls and his sword on the table and went towards the kitchen to fix a bowl of instant ramen. No matter how much Naruto changed, ramen was simply his favorite meal period. One time, the fox warned him to eat healthy stuff like some vegetables and scowled Naruto pretty much every time. What few people knew was that the fox was also responsible for the blonde's high metabolism, therefore when Naruto used to eat up to sixteen bowls of Ichiraku ramen; everyone seemed to ask where the food would go. While the noodles were being prepared, Naruto stood next to it, waiting eagerly to eat the food from heaven, as he liked to call on occasions.

Three minutes later, the instant ramen was ready and he fixed the table for dinner. Looking across the table, he saw an empty chair and sighed. Still today he never even remembered why the hell he thought of buying a pair of chairs for his table. Naruto grew up alone his entire life and while his academy sensei Iruka was rather close to the blonde, they only met at Ichirakus or at the academy. Furthermore, even his genin team didn't visit him once. So why bother, he thought. After eating all the noodles and receiving some killing intent aura courtesy of a very pissed fox, Naruto turned to study the sword a little bit. He could see that it was well taken care of from seeing how the steel managed to reflect the lamplight with perfection.

The grip was simple, all black. In fact, Naruto never once considered personalizing the katana to suit his style, simply because he couldn't think of any symbol to put. As he yielded it off the holster, Naruto had to force his arms in order to move the sword around, simply because it was so damn heavy to move with it. "**The heavier it is, the better it goes for training. Not only will help your kenjutsu style, but also improve your muscle mass. Sometimes, you have to rely on physical abilities in order to win a fight, therefore you are going to train your body to the ground and while you do that, your clones will be learning fuuton ninjutsu from the scroll and katon ninjutsu from me." – **Said Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded his consent and then put the sword back in the holster.

"Speaking of jutsus, we're going to be up all night, reading all this information. In that case, I'll be fixing a bowl of…" – Said Naruto but was interrupted by the sudden yell from Kyuubi who threatened Naruto that if he were to eat another bowl of ramen today, that he would throw everything up. Needless to say Naruto stopped thinking about the noodles, since he didn't like the idea of throwing Ramen away. "Okay, dammit. I won't eat ramen, tonight" – Mumbled Naruto, earning a satisfactory sigh from the fox.

After the little interaction, Naruto started reading the first scroll which made an introduction to fuuton ninjutsu. Upon reading, he realized that fuuton techniques were divided into two categories: sharpening the wind of cutting and slashing or enhancing the strength and speed of the wind, which meant that he would need to practically master both of them. Well, more like the second one since Naruto already knew who to cut using fuuton chakra from Kakashi and Yamato's training before.

Therefore, he kept reading line after line with great interest. By tomorrow this time, Naruto hoped to understand the technique's concepts and just make the clones practice the technique. Kyuubi said that on the first month his clones would only be learning fuuton ninjutsu and the second one, they will be learning katon. While the clones are doing ninjutsu, the real Naruto would do physical exercises, incorporating taijutsu, kenjutsu and body building workouts.

Two hours later, Naruto still didn't finish reading, but from the looks of it, he wasn't even worrying about a night sleep, from being so immersed in mastering all the fuuton jutsus and possibly the katon jutsus in the future. He grinned at the prospect of fusing his techniques with Kyuubi's, simply because of how the wind affects katon techniques. After another hour, Naruto managed to finish the scrolls, which he was proud to have been able to memorize the theory. _Great, now to practice_ – Thought Naruto to which Kyuubi snorted at the boy's naivety. **"I hope you aren't thinking of being able to master all of them tomorrow, are you? Cause that would be the most stupid thing you've ever said" – **Laughed Kyuubi, earning a scowl from the blonde. "No, of course not; although I'm already able to use fuuton chakra, I'm not even close to doing a single fuuton jutsu yet. Do not worry fox, if it's one thing I'm not, is being a genius. I just hope that at least I can manage to learn all of them in a week or two, so that the rest, I can practice doing it and hopefully master" – Said Naruto, earning a nod in recognition from the fox. **"Good, now training tomorrow will be tough on you. So I suggest that you rest a little so that you don't complain at me tomorrow" – **Said Kyuubi to which Naruto just ignored and went to sleep.

* * *

**---The next day---**

As the sunlight engulfed Naruto's apartment, he opened his eyes and got off his bed. Walking slowly towards the little balcony of his apartment, he turned to look at the rather pleasant view of Konoha and the Hokage Monument. However, his eyes were as always focused on a certain point, which was the Forth Hokage's head. For some unknown reason, Naruto always looked at the Yondaime Hokage's head and because of this, he began wondering what would happen if the man was still amongst the living. It was an A ranked secret in Konohagakure that the fox wasn't 'defeated' by the Yondaime, instead he trapped the demon inside an infant at the time by the name of Naruto.

As he closed his eyes, he was suddenly even more relaxed after a soft gust of wind came washing all of his worries and simply transformed them into nothing. For a moment, then, Naruto felt like he could do this all his life. It seemed quite logical that Naruto liked the air breeze, seeing which his elemental affinity is. After a while, he went back inside the apartment and began to change. Quickly going through the necessities, he grabbed the scrolls, the sword and the weights and left the place straight to the furthest training ground there was. Training Ground #43, being next to the Forest of Death would be perfect for Naruto to train without being interrupted by someone wanting revenge or one of the rookie 9 asking questions about his action at Asuma's funeral. It was not that he regretted saying what he did, far from it actually.

The acknowledgment of being the one who shared the body with Konoha's worst enemy did have its setbacks and sometimes being the population's scapegoat wasn't easy in the slightest. Constantly having to deal with hate stares and anger, Naruto grew accustomed to all of this and more. However, he had only two months to train and then he was back to active duty as a Hunter-nin for Konohagakure. As he jumped rooftops, he wondered how much his life would change from now on. First of all, his missions would be all the same, tracking missing-nins and exterminate them; however Naruto knew that outside of Orochimaru and Itachi, there is many powerful missing-nins as well.

Another thing will be not seeing the ones who grew up together and their respective jounins, well the living ones at least. He doubted Kurenai would ever approach him in the future and the fact was that he was fine with it. At last, those whom were considered family to him, named Jiraya, Tsunade, Iruka and Kakashi would be safe at least from Akatsuki's hands. Just thinking about Asuma's death once again, made his blood boil in frustration. He sometimes wondered If maybe he wasn't even supposed to stay in the village after he had knowledge of the fox, but then again a lot of things would never happen. First of all, his team wouldn't be sent to face Zabuza, since it was him that kept pestering the Hokage for a better mission and Sarutobi granted that wish. Also, Sasuke wouldn't be jealous of Naruto's growth.

Nonetheless, Naruto dismissed the part of Sasuke not being jealous, since he pretty much knew that at the first promise of power, the emo Uchiha would demand more and more power, eventually going to Orochimaru for guidance. And the best thing, he wouldn't have to constantly scream for attention, since he wouldn't feel the need for it anymore, since he would be outside the village. Quickly shrugging it off, since dwelling on the past would be pointless. Also the fox couldn't help but add his commentary to the idea. **"It's nice to admit that you sucked back then. You have a cunning ability in embarrassing my presence to very core with how poorly your abilities were" **– Said the proud demon to which Naruto scowled the fox, because of his god damn mask of attention.

* * *

**---Training Ground #43---**

When he arrived at the aforementioned training ground, Naruto studied its size so as to establish the number of clones to use. The size was equivalent to the one he used to begin his fuuton training; therefore 200 clones would be the number of choice. Slowly moving his arms to form the correspondent hand seal, he molded the necessary chakra and instantly the area was covered by a white smoke, appearing the 200 Naruto clones.

"Ok, then, listen up. You all have memories of the fuuton jutsus that we need to practice. Therefore, since there is two hundred of me and twelve techniques to master, we'll be doing the following. We'll divide in thirteen groups. The first twelve will be consisted of ten clones each and train one fuuton technique. The 13th group will practice chakra control." – Said the real Naruto earning mumbles from his clones which appeared to have a mind of their own at times. Suddenly, one of the clones turned to ask a question. "And while we train our asses off, what are you going to do?" – Asked the clone to which the real Naruto sighed. Since he learned the technique, he unconsciously developed the technique up to transfer the real one's conscious to the clones, therefore making them questioning the orders of the real one.

"For me is physical training. I'll be adding 20 pounds to both arms and legs. We'll be doing this for the equivalence of a week. Now let's get to work" – Ordered the real Naruto, earning screams of recognition from the clones. After seeing the clones divide into groups, the real one added the weights to his limbs and began sob running exercises around the area.

* * *

**---At the Hokage's office---**

While Naruto was training towards his goal, Tsunade was rubbing her temples because of the headache she was experiencing right now. Because of Naruto's resolve yesterday, the blonde hokage decided to release the tension by drinking a little bit. Sadly what first became a few drinks, at the end of the night; she already drank two bottles of sake. Therefore, it was safe to say that hangover was tormenting her at the moment. Not only that but right now she was in front of Sakura, Sai and Kakashi explaining to them that Naruto would not be a part of team anymore. "Tsunade-sama, what do you mean Naruto is no longer part of team 7?" – Asked Sakura clearly concerned for the blonde.

"As I'm trying to say Sakura; along his training trip, Jiraya trained Naruto in information gathering. Now the next step for him is to meet the pervert's spying network, in case something happens to Jiraya and they try to contact someone from the Leaf." – Said Tsunade to which Sakura looked down in sadness from Naruto's sudden mission. Even though Sakura was a strong person on the outside, inside she was just as fragile. She blamed herself from Sasuke's defection to Sound and now Naruto is to be trained to replace Jiraya in the future.

Kakashi knew his student and also knew that she would be even more depressed if she knew the real truth. However, Kakashi kind of understood Naruto's reasoning for doing this. Whether he is to be blamed for Asuma's death or not, it was safe to say that Akatsuki wouldn't stop for nothing in order to get their hands on him, which meant that they would be using the life of others just for information of his whereabouts. However, what Kakashi was really wondering was how insightful his blonde student was to realize this and act upon it.

Sai, the fourth member, now turned third, was impassive as always. Being trained in Root, made him behave more like a weapon. Deprived from emotions, Sai grew up as just a weapon for Konoha and nothing else. However, when he met Sakura and Naruto, he started changing his behavior, much to the point of requesting to be permanently assigned to Team 7. Now, here he was hearing the Hokage's explanation of Naruto's sudden mission and truth be told, he didn't believe it at least one bit. He knew Naruto to be unpredictable from time to time, so he was inclined to believe that everything concerning the blonde would be more complicated than it looked. Nevertheless, Sai wasn't much of a meddler in people's affairs, so let it be for the moment.

Returning to the issue in hand, Sakura was coming into terms of what will happen from now on, much to Tsunade's happiness since she didn't feel like revolving around this certain topic, concerning her blonde little brother. "Now, Team 7, you have a B ranked mission close to Suna. The Kazekage requested some help in dealing with some troublemakers that are attacking some merchants. You are scheduled to leave in two hours so gather everything and head up there. The Kazekage informed us that one of their jounins will be meeting your team close to the border between the two countries" – Said Tsunade to which the team accepted and left.

* * *

**---With Team 10---**

Shikamaru, Chouji and Ino were now having lunch at the Barbeque place, in memory of their dead sensei. Chouji was barely touching the food, demonstrating how sad he was. Shikamaru and Ino were discussing about the future of Team 10, now that their sensei was gone. Shikamaru was relating that one must be able to apply for jounin very quickly so that the team could continue to be together. Both of them knew that the Hokage would distribute the now incomplete team around or set them up with a different jounin to be captain.

"Shikamaru, there is something troubling me about what happened at the funeral. Since you weren't there, for kami knows why, there was a 'discussion' between Kurenai-san and Naruto." – Said Ino, perking Shikamaru's interest right away. Ever since Asuma died, Shikamaru vowed to protect the family that he left behind, meaning Kurenai and the yet to be born infant. Ino for her part, upon seeing that the Nara was interested, turned to explain what happened.

Along the explanation, Shikamaru's eyes were getting wider and wider, as if it was even possible after some time. However, when he heard that Kurenai called Naruto a demon and Naruto took the blame for his sensei dying, he was speechless to say the least. Shikamaru was considered to have a IQ of more than 200, however no matter how much he tried, he couldn't figure out the reason as to the two's sudden behavior. Resolving on investigating it after lunch or even asking the blonde genin, he shrugged the topic off for now.

* * *

**---At the library---**

After saying goodbye to his peers from Team 10, Shikamaru headed to the library so as to try if he could find something pertaining Naruto and why Kurenai called him a demon in the first place. Quietly moving through the library's shelves, since he practically memorized them, Shikamaru went straight for the History section. He thought that if he could see what happened during the time of Naruto's date of birth until today, he could get the answer that he was looking for.

Upon looking at the shelves, Shikamaru found the history book of Konoha. Inside there was all the facts that occurred in Konoha from the date of the village's foundation until today. Since Naruto was his age (of course), he flipped directly to the date when Yondaime was instated as Hokage of the village and go forward from there. As he flipped through the pages, he saw Konoha's victory on the last shinobi war against Iwa, courtesy of the Yondaime's Rasengan and Hiraishin no Jutsu. No matter how much people said, Shikamaru couldn't possibly believe that a single man was responsible for winning a war, no matter how strong the guy was.

Furthermore, Shikamaru focused on the part when Yondaime managed to beat the nine-tailed fox Kyuubi no Yoko at the cost of his life. As he was reading the story, he came upon the specific paragraph.

"_Tsunamis and earthquakes being caused by a simple wave of the its tail, the Kyuubi no Yoko was an immensely powerful demon that descended upon Konoha. After consecutive attacks from Konoha's elite shinobis, it still wasn't enough to overcome the demon that somehow chose to bring his wrath to Konoha. It took our strongest shinobi, Namikaze Minato, the instated Yondaime Hokage to use all his power to defeat the almighty demon, however not without the cost of his own life. After the monster's defeat, Konoha was divided among happiness and terrible misery; happiness because of the demon's defeat but sadness from the loss of Konoha's strongest Hokage."_

After reading it another time, Shikamaru felt a sudden appreciation for what the Yondaime Hokage did for the village. Because of him, his family and friends was able to live in peace. Quickly dismissing such an event, Shikamaru sighed since other than this incident and The Sand-Sound invasion, nothing much happened, therefore, he couldn't find anything related to Naruto at all. _So why, Kurenai, one of Konoha's jounin, would call Naruto a demon. _– he thought. Shikamaru wasn't dumb to know that certain events, depending on its importance, wouldn't be listed in books for the public to read. Therefore, he assumed that the blonde was a part of an A ranked secret to which only jounin and above would have access to.

Taking this thought into consideration, Shikamaru flipped the book to the Kyuubi part once again, since the word demon would only be associated with the Kyuubi. Looking at the monster's photo, he began to compare the fox with Naruto, trying to find at least something. However, other than whisker marks, he had nothing. On second thought, why would Naruto even have whisker marks in the first place, he thought.

Right now, Shikamaru was sweating profusely upon the indication that Naruto and the Kyuubi are somehow linked. Shikamaru was surprised to see that the monster's incident happened the same day of Naruto's birthday, which was strange, considering that the blonde was an orphan, so maybe Naruto's parents were killed by the Kyuubi. A lot of ideas were passing through his mind right now, but not one of them involved Naruto actually being a demon. _So the question remains. Why would Kurenai say that he is a demon?_ – He thought, well more like rubbing his temples for not being able to find the answer.

Looking at the time, he realized that he just spent over two hours in the library and still wasn't even remotely near the answer. Deciding to dwell on it from a different approach, Shikamaru moved to see how the Fourth defeated the monster. Suddenly, just like some say that in order to remember something, you need to think of something else, a thought came barging in and Shikamaru remembered of Naruto's fight against Neji at the chunnin tournament. At first, Naruto's chakra color was blue, quite the same as anybody else, which to Shikamaru, proved that he was human. However, during the fight, Naruto's chakra color somehow changed to a red appearance. It was there that Shikamaru cursed his over-grown curiosity for the first time in his life.

"_Sweet Kami, two different chakra sources. Naruto's chakra is blue, while Kyuubi's chakra is red."_ – Thought Shikamaru as he imagined a line splinting Naruto's image with being in the left side, Naruto representing the blue chakra and on the right, Kyuubi representing the red chakra.

As Shikamaru was dwelling on the discovery, one silver-haired jounin was there reading the latest edition of Icha Icha when he spotted the pineapple head looking at a picture of the Kyuubi with a face peculiar to someone who went to hell and back twice. Sighing, Kakashi concluded that Shikamaru was indeed a genius and thus, the truth would be clear to him. "I assume that by the look on your face and the subject you're reading that you know the connection between Naruto and Kyuubi." – Said Kakashi, making Shikamaru look at him, still looking like shit from such realization. "Sweet Kami, is this why Kurenai-sensei called him a demon?" – Asked Shikamaru, now demanding answers.

"Relax, I'll explain everything. But first, you are to swear secrecy of this. This is an A ranked secret, after all. Now, as you already know, the Yondaime was the one who saved Konoha from the fox, however he didn't defeat the demon. The Kyuubi happened to be a creature consisted of pure energy; therefore, it was safe to assume that it didn't have a corporeal form. Being a master of the lost art of Fuuinjutsu (Sealing Technique), Yondaime created a seal that was able to trap the demon and keep it in place. Nevertheless, the demon's jail couldn't be an inanimate object since the Kyuubi would break free in seconds. Also, it couldn't be sealed inside a grown man, since the guy's chakra coils wouldn't resist, therefore, killing him and once again setting the monster free. The Yondaime's only option was to seal the demon inside someone whose chakra coils wasn't developed yet, as a way for the monster's chakra to be able to mingle without so much as damaging the body." - Explained Kakashi, just waiting for Shikamaru to conclude the line of thinking.

"Therefore, Yondaime Hokage sealed inside a newborn baby, thus one named Uzumaki Naruto." – Mumbled Shikamaru still shocked from the news to which Kakashi just nodded. "Needn't I remember you that sharing this information will be your death penalty? I only told you because you already knew some aspects" – Said Kakashi, to which Shikamaru nodded in acknowledgement, but being the over-curious and not one bit judgmental, Shikamaru turned to ask. "So Kurenai was right, then? Naruto is the demon?" – Asked Shikamaru, before being able to see Kakashi flinch at such notion.

"Kurenai was moved by sadness from losing Asuma, so it would be only logical that she used him as a scapegoat. However, Naruto is no demon; he never was, never is and never will be. And before you ask why Naruto took the blame for Asuma's death, while his theory is true from a certain point of view, it's safe to say that Naruto isn't a demon." – Said Kakashi, interrupting Shikamaru which was in fact going to ask that. "So, what is his theory?" – Asked Shikamaru to which Kakashi sighed and wondered when the lazy bum began to show interest all of a sudden. "According to him, both him and Kyuubi share one body, therefore he believes that he's Kyuubi just as Kyuubi's him or something like that.

After hearing Naruto's theory, Shikamaru managed to see reason to it and understood why he took the blame for his sensei's death to a certain point, but he knew he would have the blonde's word for the rest. After he once again expressed his reason for keeping secrecy and stood up to leave towards his house, when Kakashi stopped him. "Whether you think he is a demon or not, it's your call. Naruto has a lot of people that don't like him, one more wouldn't make a difference" – Said Kakashi and then left the Nara chunnin.

Wondering about the blonde, Shikamaru didn't need to think about it. He knew Naruto wasn't a demon. However, he concurred with Naruto on the point of sharing a body with a demon.

* * *

**---Training Ground #43---**

After some time of training, the real Naruto was sweating profusely. Today, he thought he exercised more than a whole year without the use of weights. Sure, until then he didn't have the slave-driver kind of sensei practically beating him up inside only for Naruto to keep on going. As he was resting the five minutes granted by Kyuubi, who in turn was already healing Naruto's strained muscles for the last training run, Naruto suddenly heard shoutings. "**Fuuton Daitoppa **(Wind Style: Great Breakthrough)" **– **Said one of the clones before exhaling a huge gust of wind towards a huge boulder nearby. "**Fuuton Kaze no Yaiba** (Wind Style: Wind Sword Jutsu)" – Shouted another clone and out of nowhere a tree in front of him was sliced open. "**Fuuton Kaze no Hageshii** (Wind Style: Furious Wind Jutsu)" **– **Shouted another clone, which than was enveloped by strong wind force peculiar to the technique's name.

"Three techniques already learned, not bad. I bet the forth one will be done by the time I end my last run around the training ground" – Said Naruto before getting up and proceed the running. "So Kyuubi, how is the training so far?" – Asked Naruto, thinking of throwing small talk while running. "**Your body mass is rising considerably, however this is just the first day, so in about a week, we'll get ready to learn the kenjutsu style. Tomorrow, you'll be training taijutsu with the weights, so as to be accustomed to it. As to the jutsus, four techniques will do for now. The others will come out eventually. Since the clones already managed four techniques, you can now assign more clones to do the other more complex jutsus" – **Said Kyuubi, detailing how the day went when suddenly both of them heard one clone shouting "**Fuuton Eatama no Jutsu (**Wind Style: Air Bullet Jutsu).

* * *

**---At Naruto's house---**

After the last run, Naruto was dead tired for the first time in his life. Quickly dragging his ass to his home in order to get Kyuubi's approved dinner, which sadly to Naruto didn't have any ramen involved; rather the meal consisted of some sushi and vegetables. After the meal which was surprisingly good by the way, Naruto threw himself on his bed and just let his eyes close slowly. While the body slept, the fox inside was beginning his work. Every time Naruto rested, he would heal the strain in his muscles so that Naruto wouldn't need to wait a while before continuing training again.

* * *

**---One week later---**

Upon returning to his apartment after a long day training, Naruto was amazed about how much he was able to learn in one week by utilizing the Kage Bunshin style of training. Naruto's ninjutsu increased exponentially, since Naruto managed to make the last one called **Fuuton Suidou no Tatsumaki **(Wind Style: Tornado Tunnel Jutsu), so he was able to make all the twelve techniques listed so far; thirteen if he was to add the **Fuuton Rasengan. **

Now concerning his body structure, he grew up a few inches and was slightly ripped with muscles being quite visible at naked eye. Taijutsu with weights were a good think, since in time Naruto managed to do some precise katas. Tomorrow, it would be Kenjutsu time and Naruto was eager to finally be able to use the katana properly. Once again drifting to sleep, Naruto was suddenly awake by the fox, calling his name. **"Before you go to sleep, I believe you must know that I will be teaching you Katon ninjutsu theory and some fire techniques as well.**" – Said the fox, earning a scowl from Naruto and him mumbling quietly _'Am I supposed to be sleeping or not?" _– Thought Naruto to which Kyuubi responded with a smile.

"**Of course you'll be sleeping imbecile meat bag. The only difference would be I teaching your brain, katon ninjutsu so that tomorrow, while you learn kenjutsu, your clones will be performing katon techniques."** – Said the fox to which Naruto nodded and quickly closed his eyes sleeping. **"Okay, then. Now that he's asleep, let's implant some memories about the jutsus I'd about to teach him". **Kyuubi was impressed to see that Naruto has some strong lungs, which could gather lots of air for combustion, therefore, being able to learn the most difficult and most dangerous techniques.

* * *

**---Meanwhile with Shikamaru---**

Along the week, Shikamaru thought a lot about the blonde jinchuuriki. During the week, Team 10 did a couple of C ranked missions, since they didn't have Asuma with them anymore. During this time, Shikamaru managed to reach a conclusion about the blonde. While he knew Naruto wasn't a demon, he knew that the fox demon was residing inside of him.

Thinking of the blonde's life with a demon trapped inside his body, Shikamaru wondered how Naruto remained sane. He knew that the blonde was an orphan and being the host of a demon, Naruto could very well turn up to be a demon, however in all his life, Shikamaru just couldn't imagine Naruto doing something akin to a demon. Quite on the contrary, the blonde always wanted to protect everyone and become the Hokage. Nevertheless, he remembered what Kakashi said about a lot of people hating Naruto because of this and wondered if people blamed him for what the fox did back then.

Right now, Shikamaru was relaxing at his household's garden and staring at the clouds. Suddenly, a shadow appeared behind him. Nara Shikako was in a lot of ways an older Shikamaru, however the look on his face right now was dead serious and Shikamaru rarely saw that look. "Shika, we need to talk" – Said Shikako, before kneeling down next to his son. "Shikamaru, Kakashi-san told me that you unraveled one of Konoha's most prized secrets." – Said Shikako to which Shikamaru snorted since he knew what his father wanted to talk about. "It took me quite some time, but I managed to know. What I don't know, though, is why all of you lied to me about the Kyuubi being defeated?" – Asked Shikamaru strangely casual. The Nara Clan never raised a finger towards Naruto, however they had to comply with the Sandaime's Law.

"When the Kyuubi was trapped inside Naruto-kun, the Sandaime Hokage was afraid that people would try harming Naruto, on the hopes of hurting the demon. So, he issued a law stating death penalty for those who regarded Naruto as being a demon. However, while no one could regard him as such, the people of Konoha simply treated him like trash, beating him, cursing at him. And before you ask, none of the Nara clan ever raised a finger at the boy; however we didn't do anything towards helping the boy either. The Kyuubi killed a lot of people: sons, husbands, wives, parents. In the end, Naruto ended up being the village's scapegoat. I have to say, though, for him to do what he did at Asuma's funeral, took a lot of guts out of him. I often times, wondered why the Yondaime chose Naruto to become the vessel of such demon, but now after seeing his resolve, I couldn't think of anyone else to fit such role better than him" – Said Shikako, confusing Shikamaru at the last part. "Why you say that?" – Asked the Nara chunnin.

"After so many injustices, so much hardship in his life, he still has the guts to acknowledge his situation and assume all responsibility for what happened almost sixteen years ago. The Yondaime was pure genius." – Said Shikako, although consciously missing the fact the he was talking about father and son, but that was an ever bigger secret than the Kyuubi's. After hearing his father, Shikamaru smiled at the prospect of actually getting to know the real Naruto, not the hyperactive knucklehead that the blonde appeared to be.

* * *

**---Training Ground #43---**

"**Dammit Naruto, use your muscles"** – Said the fox, after seeing Naruto attacking with the sword. For some time now, Naruto started training his kenjutsu style and he was finding it hard to control his arm muscles while fighting. The secret of the technique was to use the muscles when attacking or defending, empowering the strikes and when he was jus analyzing the opponent, that was the time for muscle relaxation. "Quit screaming, damn fox. I can hear you without the shouting" – Said Naruto before kneeling on the ground, requesting for rest to which the fox complied and he turned to see the clones struggling to learn Katon ninjutsu. So far, the clones managed to learn the **Katon Goukakyuu no Jutsu **(Fire Style: Grand Fireball Jutsu), **Katon Makai no Kaen **(Fire Style: Hell Blaze Jutsu) and **Katon Kaen no Doki **(Fire Style: Fire's Wrath Jutsu).

Naruto was impressed to see that the last ones the clone learned was the fox's creations. However, Naruto wasn't surprised, seeing that the kitsune lived through thousands and thousands of years, thus learning a lot of things throughout his existence. "**Okay now time is over, your muscles are good to go. However I'll be teaching you my third jutsu. It's called Katon Endou no Tsurugi (**Fire Style: Flame Sword Jutsu). **It consists of channeling katon chakra at the blade, transforming it into a fire type katana, similar in a way to applying fuuton chakra and making the blade sharper. Whis this technique, no one will try to attack you and will be extra cautious to defend as well." – **Said the fox to which Naruto nodded and started focusing the necessary amount of the fox's chakra and start channeling katon chakra.

"How do you know the metal won't melt?" – Asked the blonde to which the fox answered like it was plainly obvious. "**I know a good sword when I see one**" – Said the kitsune, making Naruto sweat drop at possibly melting his sword, thus having to buy another one.

After channeling the chakra, Naruto was expecting the metal to suddenly turn into liquid, however much to his amazement, the sword began to catch on fire. What was even more amazing was the fact that he wasn't being affected by the heat. After seeing this, Kyuubi grinned, saying that the flames would only hurt a regular katon user, but Naruto was sharing a body with the Fire Lord of the Underworld. "**Now let's proceed with the physical training. You're getting stronger but you're in no way near the strength necessary to wield the Furiseirei **(free spirit)**" – **Said the fox to which Naruto mumbled something about stupid slave-driver fox and began to do his sets of push-ups and sit-ups, followed by running around the training field and jumping from tree through tree.

While the real Naruto was working out, a single person was just walking out of her favorite training ground. Few actually knew but the second part of the chunnin exam was held at the Forest of Death simply because Mitarashi Anko was the proctor of such event. The reason as to why she liked the place was the peace and quiet that came along with it, plus a few animals to kill when she was feeling like a little blood. However, as she jumped from the gate, she sensed a lot of chakra being spent near where she was standing, presumably someone training in Training Ground #43.

When she arrived at the training ground, her jaw was instantly set to the ground. In front of her, were what appeared to be hundreds blondes training katon ninjutsu and apparently one doing physical workout. Actually, the sight before her made Anko drool a little bit at seeing the one doing push-ups and sit-ups. _Damn, he's hot. Doesn't hurt to pay a little visit, let's see who this guy is. _– Thought Anko as she proceeded to the one working out, not even minding the clones stopping their training to look at the newcomer.

The real Naruto suddenly received a message from one of the clones that vanished. He was furious that he was going to be perturbed in here, where he thought no one would ever come here except for the chunnin exams. Suddenly, a thought registered and Naruto knew the only one crazy enough to consider this side of the village, a little playground. Mitarashi Anko was the most sadist person he ever met and the fact that the fox liked the girl didn't help one bit. There were times when Naruto would dream that he and Anko was inside the Training Ground #44 AKA Forest of Death, doing naughty stuff together and only now he knew that it was the damn fox delaying images inside his head, just for his amusement.

Anko for her part, as she approached the person, was beginning to recognize the face features. However, the one she knew that contained whisker marks, wasn't supposed to be this big as of yet. Even though three years have passed ever since she laid eyes on the obnoxious brat, it just wasn't possible for him to grow so much. As she arrived near him, she realized she was drooling for a fifteen year old. However, she was surprised to see the blonde getting up and surpassing her height by a good six inches (Anko is 5' 4 so Naruto is 6'0). "Is there something you wish to discuss, Anko-san?" – Asked Naruto, not demonstrating his rather irritation at having this conversation instead of training.

"I was just in the neighborhood. Sensed your chakra and came to check. Do you have a problem with me here? What's with the training, never seen one train like this before?" – Asked Anko and while she was waiting for an answer, she was seizing the boy now over-grown man. Truth be told, she was rather mad for the blonde who didn't even say hello to her, but she guessed that she interrupted something, so that must've been it.

She remembered what Yuugao shared with her sometime ago about the blonde taking responsibility for Asuma-san's death to Akatsuki and safe to say, Anko wanted a few answers from the source. However she was taken aback when Naruto turned to answer rather rude. "I chose this area, so that no one would bother me, just like you have your own. Now, as to the training, I happen to have quite a lot of chakra to spend." – Said Naruto to which Anko scowled at him. Truth be told she liked the tranquility at the Forest of Death, so like the blonde, she would be furious if someone interrupted her, however being accused of doing the opposite, she was pissed to say the least. "Ok, I get it, so you're saying I got in the way of your train…Oh, I guess I did it, didn't I? My bad" – Said Anko, after she looked around and noticed that hundreds of Naruto were looking at her.

Seeing that Naruto wasn't training anymore, he dismissed the clones one by one until all their memory came to him and he sent near the tree he was in. Of course, while he was looking at the snake mistress, Kyuubi was behaving like an animal in heat, making Naruto be rather uncomfortable. _'Would you stop that you damn fox, she's human and you're a god damn fox. _– Thought Naruto out loud to which the fox responded_. __**"**_**I'll stop as soon as you get in bed with her.****Besides, I can take the shape of a man and start doing stuff to her that you even began to dream about.**" – Mumbled the fox to which Naruto scowled and started paying attention at the real world.

"If you want to know about my training, just know that what the kage bunshin learns, the real one will receive his memory after he is dispelled." - Said Naruto to which Anko set by his side. "Oh yes, Kakashi's invention. Say, why you are sweating so much, not that I'm complaining about it." – Said Anko to which Naruto appeared inside his mindscape and blamed the fox for the sex images inside his head. It only got worse, though, when Kyuubi advised for Naruto to tell her the truth. To say Naruto was uncomfortable now it would be an understatement, he was having trouble to control such lust and if he told Anko that the fox has the hots for her, he knew she would jump at his neck instantly. _What the hell? At least this will go away_. (_AN: Mind you readers that he isn't gay, he just hates perverts_).

"Anko…-san" – Called Naruto, as his breathing was becoming agitated from the huge lust and the sudden response from his hormones because of the pictures inside his head. Anko for her part was confused on what was going on; first Naruto starts sweating and now she could smell the lust leaking out of his body, thus affecting her as well. "Y…es Naruto...-san?" – Asked Anko almost on the verge of exploding to which Naruto turned to explain their current situation. "Would you believe it I told you that this lust you're feeling it all belongs to the fox inside?" – Asked Naruto now having trouble breathing. Anko, after hearing that, gritted her teeth from the lust pressure. Of course no human would be this horny and certainly not Naruto who openly cursed the perverted sannin from peeping at the naked women. "Why…is the fox…doing this?" – Asked Anko, now believing more than anything.

"E…ver since we met you, he has been doing this from time to time. I…don't know what to do to control such urge." – Said Naruto before suddenly he heard moaning coming from Anko, worsening the situation even more if that was possible. Anko for her part was impressed with the boy's resolve against becoming a pervert. Being able to control this urge for three whole years and not jump at nearly any female in front of him was a feat on its own. However, she didn't have that kind of control and it was unlikely that she would get rid of this feeling anytime soon, so she'd help the blonde with this.

"Naruto-kun, I doubt…that we could control this urge. It's best to just go along with the flow…" – Said Anko before moaning louder. Naruto for his part, because of his increased sense of smell, could sense Anko's pheromones reaching volcano temperatures. However, after a whole three years of this, only a gay wouldn't be phased about it. Suddenly Naruto saw Anko taking off her coat and come forward, becoming face to face with the blonde, then smashing her lips with his own.

While the kiss was going on, Naruto was going nuts inside. He thought that with this, the situation would be solved, but now Kyuubi was out of control and he feared for Anko's life. Right now, Anko was on top of him, madly kissing him while using her hands to massage his arms and chest. Suddenly, Anko felt something beginning to grow downstairs and instantly, her lust was increased. Instantly, with one free hand, she began massaging Naruto's cock with intense. "Uhm, aren't we excited? What would you like to do with this firm one here?" – Asked Anko, not even waiting for Naruto to answer, before kissing him once again and then take off her fishnet clothes that happened to be the only piece of clothing separating Naruto from her breasts.

After Naruto saw the breasts, all sense of control he had until now vanished literally. Therefore, he attacked Anko's breasts with his mouth, sucking them dry, making Anko cry in pleasure. Truth be told, she was having hard times controlling her orgasm after Naruto's stunt. Suddenly when Naruto's free hand started to massage her downstairs, she convulsed.

Anko Mitarashi was what could say a proud woman and thus losing to someone is not something she enjoys. Therefore, after taking the time to feel the bliss that came with the orgasm, Anko woke up, yanked Naruto's pants off with force and started sucking Naruto's cock with intensity.

Meanwhile, the fox inside of Naruto was smiling deviously at his successful plan. He knew that his host had a thing against perverts; however that didn't mean he couldn't have sex. Therefore, he began sending images of a naked Anko to his mind and increases the body temperature in hopes of breaking the boy's control.

Back to Anko and Naruto, Naruto was losing control of his orgasm while Anko was sucking every inch of his firm member. He had to hand to the girl, not only a good kunoichi, but also quite skilled at the sex arts. Anko, for her part, was particularly enjoying the taste of his cock inside her mouth; however she was trapped by a sudden urge to feel his dick inside of her. Therefore, while on top of him, Anko took of the rest of her clothes and just put his member inside of her. To say Anko was enjoying, it would be an understatement. After each thrust, Anko was becoming more and more aroused. And when she looked at Naruto's face, she bends her body close to his face in order to smash her lips with his own as well as keeping the penetration.

Naruto for his part was quite impressed to see that the snake mistress was enjoying his strong thrusts inside of her. He couldn't control the power of the thrusts inside her and was afraid that he would hurt her, but the stronger the thrusts were the louder was her moaning for more. Therefore, when he moved forward to changing position, Anko didn't even hesitate and complied. Bending in all fours, Anko suddenly screamed in pleasure when Naruto putted his cock in with intensity. Anko happened to enjoy this position, since Naruto could pull her hair back and that was like a fetish to her. True to her fantasy, Naruto started pulling her hair while thrusting it inside with force. "Oh god. That's it, Naruto-kun. Keep it up, I need more." – Screamed Anko, already on the process of convulsion to which Naruto responded by giving one deep thrust, reaching Anko's inner walls.

After a few movements, Naruto and Anko were going at it with both of them almost on the verge of exploding. Anko had already came with Naruto's dick inside of her, therefore her inner walls ended up squeezing his cock, making him moan even louder in ecstasy. When it was Naruto's turn to have an orgasm, Anko took his cock and sucked it once again, making Naruto lose all sorts of control and simply release the fluid inside her throat.

A few minutes later, both of them, now fully dressed, sit side by side. Naruto was explaining to Anko that he and the fox shared the same body and that together they were one. Being that said, Anko understood his decision to take the blame for what happened, but he thought less of trying to convince him not to think like that, simply because he didn't even show that he regretted such decision.

"So, what are you going to do now? After what you've done, you can't stay here and wait for them to sudden praise you or something." – Asked Anko to which Naruto nodded. "I was never in need of recognition from them in the first place and you're right, I can't stay here, but not because this village would hunt me down or something like that. The longer I stay here, the more people will be hurt by Akatsuki just so that they can get to me. So, I made a secret request to Hokage-sama to be instated as a…" – Said Naruto and whispered the name of the position close to Anko's ear so that no one would hear.

Anko for her part, after hearing it, understood his idea. Becoming a hunter-nin would take him away from the village, therefore not endangering anyone. Akatsuki would search for him elsewhere, but they won't find him, simply because of a mask and a simple henge, changing the hair color. "Well, Naruto, about what happened between us. Although that was the best sex I've ever had, it doesn't mean that we have feelings for each other. I, for one, didn't even know if you were dead or still alive since you disappeared for three years and I bet you have feelings for that Sakura girl, right?" – Asked Anko to which Naruto simply nodded in the negative. "Sakura is nothing more than a teammate to me. My supposed crush for her was more of my sudden drive for attention in the past. But while I don't have feelings for anyone at the moment, I can say that I don't consider you more than a potential friend. Like me, you also suffered hardships in life and right now, you know a secret of mine that only the Hokage, Jiraya and Kakashi know of, therefore ask for secrecy in this" – Said Naruto to which Anko smiled, appreciating the honesty and getting up.

In all honesty, the sex happened simply because of the uncontrollable lust that surrounded the area, therefore while usually girls would be upset from the rejection, Anko was one to hate falsity, so she began respecting the blonde in front of her even more for his honesty. "Good luck on your journey Naruto. When you return, make sure to tell me about the trip and don't worry your secret is safe with me." – Said Anko to which Naruto smiled and nodded. "Thanks. I'll be sure to send you a few heads if yu want to" – Said Naruto to which Anko smiled genuinely for the first time in her life. "No thanks, I enjoy a little bit of blood, but not actual human flesh. I'll be hearing good things from you Naruto. Just don't be greedy. I happen to know a few hunter-nins that happen to be killed because they tried to capture Orochimaru or Itachi." – Said Anko, earning a nod from Naruto.

"Those will have to wait for the moment. I'm beginning with C ranked missing-nins for a while. After a while, I'll go to the B-ranked, therefore it's safe to say that S-ranked criminals will be the last of the list, I appreciate for the concern, though" – Said Naruto, earning a nod from Anko who in turn smiled deviously out of sudden. "And maybe we can have another go, when you and the fox are in need of a woman's touch" - Said Anko before walking away, leaving Naruto sitting there with a sighed expression on his face while Kyuubi smiled deeply inside his mindscape.

'_Yep, indeed the most sadistic person alive' _– Thought Naruto to which the Kyuubi retorted "**Indeed she is, but that doesn't mean you didn't enjoy it"** – Said the fox, making Naruto sigh. "Stating the obvious".


	3. Departure

**Chapter 3 – Departure**

It has been almost a week after the whole 'interaction' with Anko happened and now Naruto was seen slashing imaginary opponents with his now blazed katana. At first, he thought that the heat generated from the sword would hurt him rather profusely. However, Kyuubi assured him that when Naruto uses its chakra, the fire won't consume his body, simply because of how Kyuubi's control over the fire element is. Suffice to say, Naruto was impressed at know that Kyuubi was the true lord of fire. Furthermore, Naruto was quickly learning the **Houka Yakushin **(fire dash) kenjutsu style and thus being able to wield the **Furiseirei **(free spirit) with ease now. After all, he not only got accustomed to the weights on his body but the katana's weight as well.

"**Naruto, now that your kenjutsu training is done; we'll improve your ninjutsu part. I know that you already learned all the fuuton jutsus and all of the katon jutsus that I told you so far. But since you're going to be pretty much alone out there, you'll need to save as much chakra as you could. Therefore, chakra control exercise is vital. Now, summon three hundred clones and divided them into two groups. One will practice tree walking and the other will go to the lake for water walking practice. You, on the other hand, will do a new exercise." **– Said the fox to which Naruto nodded and turned to summon the two groups. After he divided them and set each group for their specific tasks, he turned to listen to the exercise that the fox would relate to him.

"**Now, you'll be practicing meditation. The theory is simple, by closing your eyes and focus on your inside, you can manage to feel your chakra flowing through your chakra coils. The objective of this exercise is to be able to feel how much chakra you're using while on a technique or just channeling chakra to a specific part of your body. After this exercise, there is two high level katon jutsus that I will teach you. First one is a human one called Katon Karyuu Endan **(Fire Style: Dragon Fire Missile Jutsu) **and the other one is one of mine that I called Katon Makai no Kyouran **(Fire Style: Hell's Fury Jutsu).**" **– Said Kyuubi to which Naruto sit and closed his eyes, true to Kyuubi's teachings so far.

Along the month period, Naruto was rather impressed by seeing this teacher side of the fox. While he was tough, actually more inclined to a slave-driver, Naruto was able to learn a lot from the kitsune, thus shortening the time needed for him to be able to take care of himself outside of Konoha. While he closed his eyes, he began what the fox said about, channeling chakra through specific parts of his body, thus trying to feel such a flow. After a while, Naruto had already tried every parts of his body in efforts of feeling the chakra flowing inside of him, but he wasn't lucky at all. So far, he couldn't see if he was channeling more or less of the chakra necessary and that was frustrating. Kyuubi once told him that this exercise was more to test his patience while channeling chakra, since it would get him to understand things more clearly, without being driven by negative emotions.

* * *

**---With Anko---**

Walking without a care in the world, among the streets of Konoha, Anko was heading towards her favorite restaurant in Konoha, the dango store. Along the way, she wondered how she would have survived without being able to taste such pleasure in life. While she was walking, however, she noticed someone familiar coming from the opposite side of her and sighed at the person's sad expression on her face. Anko kind of sympathized with Kurenai, not because she lost someone dear to her, but simply from pain in general. Kurenai was somewhat of a friend to Anko, since she was the few amongst the ones from their generation that never mistreated Anko because of what Orochimaru did to Konoha.

Deciding that a little comfort was in need, Anko approached the red-eyed jounin with a smile on her face. "Ohayo, Kurenai" – Shouted Anko, greeting to which the woman smiled and nodded in response. After a while of greetings, Anko offered an invitation to eat some dango to which Kurenai accepted. So right now, both of them, having already ordered their respective plates, settled down in a table. Kurenai was still looking down, clearly morning over her lover's death, while Anko was trying to come up with something for conversation purposes. "So, how is your team?" – Asked Anko, clearly throwing conversation away and even more clearly it was that Kurenai wasn't on the mood to be talking about team 8. "Sorry Anko, since it happened, I haven't seen them yet. Hokage-sama assigned a temporary replacement for me, so they are out on missions, other than that I don't know much." – Said Kurenai, without even bothering to look at Anko's face.

However as Anko was about to ask another question, Nara Shikamaru entered the place and spotted the two kunoichis and the look on Kurenai's face at the death of his sensei. Truth be told, Shikamaru still wasn't accustomed to not smelling the intoxicating smoke that usually came out of Asuma's death sticks, but he at least was in terms with what happened and was on the verge of moving on, but seeing Kurenai's saddened face, proved to him that in her case, it would take longer to heal. "Ohayo, Anko-san, Kurenai-sensei" – Said Shikamaru, not with the pretension of staying any longer than he has to, since he felt like interrupting their conversation and it would be much troublesome to do a thing like that.

"Hello there, Shikamaru. Join us if you want. I believe Kurenai here would appreciate that you stay at least for a little while" – Said Anko, most likely begging for him to stay and bring up a topic that was worthy, also one that wouldn't increase Kurenai's sadness even further. "Say, I was looking for Naruto, I wonder if any of you know where he is?" – Asked Shikamaru, making Anko sweat profusely and suddenly diminish the guy's intelligence rate. Here she was expecting him to at least bring up a harmless conversation and instead the man asks for the man who, according to Kurenai, was the one responsible for Asuma getting killed. True to her worries, Kurenai clenched her fists at the sudden name and would attack Shikamaru had his shadow wouldn't appear and hold the woman's punch.

After seeing what she would have done, Kurenai withdraw her arm and apologized to the chunnin. "Sorry Shikamaru, I didn't mean to lash out on you is just…." – Said Kurenai to which Shikamaru filled in the gaps for her. "Every time you hear Naruto's name, you get angry. There is no need for apologies Kurenai-sensei" – Said Shikamaru to which Kurenai nodded and looked down again. "It was his fault that Asuma is dead. If he wasn't here, Akatsuki wouldn't come here searching for him." – Said Kurenai, almost like expecting to be contradicted by any of the two, but strangely no one said a word, making the red-eyed kunoichi look at both shinobis on the table. First, she noticed that Shikamaru was sad as well, but she knew that the death of Asuma was the only reason; however Anko was with her eyes closed, presumably thinking.

True to Kurenai's wonderings, Anko was indeed thinking and the reason was Kurenai's comment regarding Naruto's staying here in the village. She wondered if Kurenai was saying that simply because of Asuma's death or that Kurenai really believed that Naruto staying in the village would only bring misfortune to the village in the future. Suddenly, she remembered the blonde saying something to her that.

**Flashback on**

"_So, what are you going to do now? After what you've done, you can't stay here and wait for them to sudden praise you or something." – Asked Anko to which Naruto nodded. "I was never in need of recognition from them in the first place and you're right, I can't stay here, but not because this village would hunt me down or something like that. The longer I stay here, the more people will be hurt by Akatsuki just so that they can get to me." _

**Flashback off**

_Naruto, now matter how much suffering you've been through in your life, no matter how much adversity you overcame, still you have to bear the burden of forever being Konoha'__s scapegoat. Such as the life of a jinchuuriki such as yours; if I were to choose, I'd gladly committed suicide a long time ago. My congrats to your will for living and I hope that the villagers and Kurenai will eventually stop blaming you for what happened. _– Thought Anko as she looked at Kurenai one more time, before saying all that she needed to say. "Do not worry anymore Kurenai, you'll never see his face ever again" – Said Anko before lifting from her chair and living Kurenai and Shikamaru looking at her trench coat.

Shikamaru for his part was intrigued by what Anko said. He knew that Naruto wouldn't abandon the village, simply because he wouldn't stand as low as the Uchiha traitor. However, why would no one ever see his face again. _A mask perhaps? _– Thought Shikamaru, wondering that Naruto's face would be forever hidden by him using a mask. So that meant that either he entered the Anbu program or he was listed as a Hunter-nin. Knowing that such doubt wouldn't solve the mystery that is Uzumaki Naruto, Shikamaru turned to address Kurenai that he was supposed to meet his father to which Kurenai nodded and bid him goodbye. After Shikamaru left, Kurenai got to think about what Anko said for a moment.

Since her interaction with Naruto at the funeral, Kurenai was getting more and more convinced that the blonde would be better off gone from Konoha even before he was born. Of course, she knew, deep inside, that she began to think about him as being the one to blame, because of Asuma getting killed. Kurenai never viewed the boy as being a demon. Actually, she even found her student Hinata's crush on Naruto to be actually cute. However, at the funeral, Kurenai was in turmoil over Asuma dying, so yet again Naruto was used as her scapegoat for her frustrations.

Kurenai remembered all of the interactions that she so far had with the boy. Out of few times she got in contact with him, however, what caused the most affect on her consideration of the boy, was the time he helped save Yakumo for her inner demon. At the time, Yakumo was trapped inside her own mind, trying to understand what really happened that killed her parents. In the end, Kurenai was able to wake Yakumo up, by using Naruto's life as an example. At the time, she actually respected the boy from keeping the fox demon at bay and even be able to endure the hatred of the villagers and even some shinobis who happened to lose their family, but now that Kurenai lost her family supposedly because of Naruto, Kurenai simply changed her whole idea of who was Uzumaki Naruto and blamed everything on him.

She remembered seeing Naruto's eyes that moment at the funeral and she was able to see guilt all over his face. Now that she recollected the events, she was able to see that the blonde was assuming all the blame for Asuma's death, without even worrying about the consequences of such act. After that, when he offered her the opportunity to take revenge from Asuma's death, he was simply abandoning his will to live only for her to take revenge from her husband's death. _But why would he do something like that? If I decided to go through at the time, I would have killed him for sure…Would he let me do it? – _Thought Kurenai as she was done eating and just playing with the remaining food.

Suddenly, thoughts of Anko saying that she wouldn't see Naruto's face ever again, made her wonder what would that supposed to mean. Kurenai knew that Anbu was recruiting talented individuals to join their forces, but as much as Naruto grew, she knew that he wasn't prepared to become an Anbu. Even more, since he was still a genin. So, that would remain the second ninja profession that required the usage of a mask. _Oh no, he's going to become a Hunter-nin, isn't he? He is going to leave the village? My god, is this all my fault? _- Thought Kurenai. Reaching to a conclusion, Kurenai got up from the restaurant, paid for the bill and went towards finding the blonde for a little conversation.

* * *

**---With Naruto---**

Looking at the mask that he was going to be wearing, Naruto was remembering when the leader of the Hunter-nin program, aka his new boss, appeared this morning.

**Flashback o****n**

_A tall man wearing a hunter-nin mask and black over-coat approached the area where he was supposed to meet his new recruit. According to the Hokage, this person was talented and would be a fine addiction to his program. Therefore, he approached the training ground at first to gauge this Uzumaki Naruto's abilities. He wasn't surprised by seeing what appeared to be a hundred clones of the blonde, practicing katon ninjutsu while one of them was swinging a katana. __After a while of watching and pretty satisfied, he approached the one holding the katana and presented himself. _

"_Hello there, Uzumaki Naruto?" – Greeted the man to whom the real Naruto stopped swinging the sword and turn to look at the tall man wearing a hunter-nin mask. Naruto knew that today he would be receiving his gears and Hunter-nin material; therefore he wasn't surprised to see a hunter-nin in front of him. "Hello, do I know you? How do you know my name?" – Asked Naruto just for the man to present himself without the need of saying anything wrong. "The name is of no relevance to you, soldier. Now, I got words from Hokage-sama, that you wish to become a hunter-nin and although she told me the reason as to why you want to become one, I for one don't care about it. Your reasons are your own. Now, I'm the Hunter-nin leader and as a hunter, you shall address me as leader-sama, got that soldier" – Said the leader, gaining a nod from the blonde. _

"_Okay, now here is your mask and an updated bingo-book of Konoha's missing-nin so far as well as a book consisting of missing ninjas across the elemental countries. Your job is to hunt only Konoha's missing nin, however should you eventually capture missing-nins from other countries, you'll need to go there and collect the bounty on said person. Now, regarding our missing-nins, since you can't come and go here every time you collect a head, we'll have to establish a connection between you and the Hunter-nin station here in Konoha" – Said the leader to which Naruto nodded and proceed with his idea for a link of communication. "Leader-sama, I already thought of a possible link between us. I'll summon toad summon Gamakichi and he'll be responsible for establishing a line of communication between us." – Said Naruto._

"_That's fine. Now, you'll need to change your clothes if you want to survive out there. While you're wearing black, you're also wearing orange; therefore it's safe to say that you'd be a sitting duck out there. So, before you start tomorrow, shop for another piece of clothing, preferably black that won't give away your position. Now, good luck out there" – Said the man, before vanishing and leaving Naruto alone on the field to think about it. _

**Flashback off**

Putting his mask on, Naruto got up and dispelled the clones one by one until memories of the last jutsu he would be learning entered his mind. The Hell's wrath jutsu was considered high level and Naruto would need at least two tails worth of Kyuubi to do this technique, so it would be like a last resort kind of jutsu. After that, Naruto left the training ground, heading for his house. On the way, Naruto was surprised to see that no one recognized him with the mask on. Therefore one and one from the rookie 9 passed through him and no one knew that it was him. Sakura, Ino, Hinata, Tenten, Neji, Lee, Chouji, Kiba, Shino; no one could spot the blonde when the mask was on. Seeing this, Naruto sighed realizing that his path has began and thus, his past life ended. Upon arrival at his house, he saw the last person that would pay him a visit. Yuhhi Kurenai was there sitting in front of his door, waiting for him to arrive.

Naruto wondered if the woman would take his offer and strike his heart with a kunai. Getting ready, he approached the door with his mask still on, thus attracting the woman's attention. Kurenai for her part, saw the blonde already with the hunter-nin mask on and sighed, hoping that she wasn't too late to do what she intended to do. When Naruto stopped in front of her, Kurenai gasped at the sudden growth. She remembered at the funeral, that Naruto was barely bigger than Kiba's size, but now Naruto apparently was bigger by two sizes, thus showing that he must've been training non-stop to achieve this form. Also, Kurenai managed to see the Katana strapped on his back and also knew that he didn't use one until now. However, when it was supposed to open her mouth, she couldn't from the words, much less let a sound escape to which Naruto took as an his responsibility to start any sort of conversation.

"Kurenai-san, what can I do for you?" – Asked Naruto, earning her attention and silently thanking his initiative so as not to look foolish. "Naruto, first of all I wanted to apologize for what I said a month ago" – Said Kurenai and then waited for a reaction out of the now masked shinobi. "No need for apologies. What you said was nothing far from the truth and you as hell know that." – Spoke Naruto, making Kurenai look down in sadness, from seeing this boy was delusional as to his situation. "You can't seriously believe that. I shouldn't have spoken that to you, you're not the fox, Naruto" – Shouted Kurenai, however not even fazing the blonde. Whether you believe it or not, Kurenai-san; the truth is that Kyuubi and I share the same body, so he is me and I'm him. Now, I'll just go inside and grab some money for shopping, be right back" – Said Naruto, not even waiting for a response.

After he came back, he was surprised to see that she was still there waiting for him. "You're still here, I see?" – Asked Naruto to which Kurenai nodded and turned to ask him about where he was going to which Naruto responded by saying he needed to buy new clothes for the job. Naruto knew that Kurenai saw his mask, thus wouldn't try hiding his profession to her. "Can I come as well? I want to talk to you about your choice of being a hunter-nin" – Asked Kurenai to which Naruto lifted his shoulders as in telling her that he didn't care whatever happened.

On the way, Kurenai was apprehensive by looking at the masked blonde. As a child, she had lots of nightmares concerning that mask and now here she was seeing what looked like a bright young man, actually starting to scare her a lot. "Naruto, why did you become a hunter-nin?" – Asked Kurenai while walking side by side with the big blonde. Naruto for his part didn't trust her enough to relate his actual reasons as well as the fact that he didn't want anyone trying to dissuade him out of it, so he simply gave her a vague response. "Decided to give it a try; who knows maybe I can find my vocation" – Said Naruto, not even bothering to turn his head to face the woman, much to her annoyance. "You don't know what it means to be a hunter-nin, being a hunter-nin is tough" – Said Kurenai, trying to dissuade him out of it, much to Naruto's annoyance this time. "I didn't know you were a hunter-nin before Kurenai-san, since you know what it is to be one, then. Now, I'm going inside to buy some black clothes for me, you can come if you so wish to" – Said Naruto to which Kurenai was already fuming at the boy's ability to piss her off.

"**Careful Naruto, you are pissing her off. While I enjoy seeing that face on people, you wouldn't like to be on her bad side"**– Said Kyuubi to which Naruto started to talk inside his head. _"My answers are serving a purpose; getting her pissed at me, will stop her from trying to dissuade me from leaving_." – Thought Naruto as he entered the shop and went to the clothes section, while seeing the face of anger displayed by the jounin. Kurenai, for her part, decided to breathe a little bit and forget about the blonde's attempt of pissing her off. After that, she began to scan the blonde's choice of clothes. So far, Naruto picked up what appeared to be the a black coat; also he picked a fishnet shirt and went to the dresser to try it on, never once taking his mask off, making her wonder if he's doing this so as to remain inconspicuous amongst the crowd.

When he went out of the dresser, Kurenai had to give it to the guy. In a few minutes, he managed to find a style that well suited him and his new profession. Black cargo paints on the bottom and an open black coat on top of the fishnet shirt. Also, he found some fingerless gloves (also black),finishing with dark grey boots. Actually, if she wasn't a month ago, blaming him for the death of her husband, she would find this new Naruto to be quite the looker (of course without the mask on). After seeing him paying for the clothes and leave the store, she sighed knowing that his path was now chosen and no one would change that. Now leaving the store, she ran to his side and started to look at his new look. _Quite an enigma this guy; he didn't even appear to be thinking about anything other than going forward. What is on his mind right now?" _– Thought Kurenai.

Upon arriving at his apartment, he took off his mask and looked at Kurenai for a moment. After this, Kurenai forever felt like betraying her husband after seeing the blonde's face, however she was awoken from her wonderings, when Naruto turned to speak. "This will be last time we laid eyes with each other, Kurenai-san. Whether we meet after this, will be by pure coincidence; Take care of what and who's important to you." – Said Naruto, before giving his back to the woman and closing the door, leaving her outside without even waiting for a response. Truth be told, she was appalled by what she said, but then she knew that he was simply stating the truth of the matter. Hunter-nins were hard to be seen since they travelled constantly and when they were inside the village, they used masks so it was impossible for them to meet again outside of pure coincidence. Kurenai also was happy to hear what he said for last.

Needless to say the blonde managed to get Kurenai out of her misery from Asuma's death and helped her wake up for life. _Naruto, I'll be waiting for your return, so that I can tell my son your story. I want him to meet the one who faced the adversities in life and strived to overcome them. Through your story, I hope to teach my son what it means to be a true shinobi that inherited the will of fire. Naruto, genin of Konoha, jinchuuriki of the Kyubi no Yoko and now Hunter-nin for Konohagakure. I'll do my best for the next generation to know of whom you are and who are you about to become in the future. Until then, please watch out for yourself._

* * *

**---The next day---**

The next day, Naruto woke up to what was his last night sleep inside the village walls. Strangely enough, he had the best sleep of his life. He dreamed about being able to see the world without worrying to come back or even having to fulfill a mission. Since he decided to leave the first thing in the morning, he woke up at 6 and was already heading towards the gate at seven. Looking around, he saw the shops beginning to open for business but very few citizens were on the streets, which was perfect for him. A couple of shinobis were visible, even two Anbus that were patrolling the area, but other than that, Naruto didn't recognize anyone.

Practically visualizing the huge gate in front of him, Naruto sighed since right in front of the gate, there were a few recognizable people. Jiraya, Tsunade, Kakashi, Anko and strangely Iruka were there to see him off. Somehow, they knew that Naruto would leave early and stood there waiting for his arrival. As to the group, they were waiting for Naruto to appear and leave to start his hunter-nin mission; however their sights were met by a big 6'2'' man wearing all black from head to toe; hunter-nin mask and blonde hair.

Anko was the one who recognized the blonde, which earned the attention of everyone for two reasons. One was Naruto's outfit and two was that Anko managed to recognize him, which made everyone grow suspicious of the snake mistress. Jiraya already figured that the girl and Naruto got 'comfortable' with one another and began to write some noted on his notebook, earning Kakashi's attention (from being the number 1 fan of Icha Icha) and Tsunade's fury. The result was Tsunade punching Jiraya and Kakashi to grab the notebook and read the material so far.

When Naruto stopped in front of the group, he was surprised to say that he didn't know what to say to them. Kurenai was easy because he wanted to piss her off, however this group was the only one to whom Naruto could trust, however he didn't want them feeling sad that he left or even trying to dissuade him of his decision. Luckily to Naruto, however, Kakashi chose to initiate the conversation. "Naruto, contrary to what you might be thinking, none of us wishes to dissuade you of anything. We just wanted to wish you best of luck out there." – Said Kakashi with a smile behind his mask to which Naruto just nodded and took off his mask, surprising everyone present.

This new Naruto was somewhat different. His eyes expression didn't have any doubts of what the blonde was about to do and by looking at him, everyone somehow felt it was right for him doing this. True to their analysis, Naruto was actually confident that this was the best vocation for him. Also, he would protect the village by leaving them. By now, news of his fake travel to visit Jiraya's network was already public, therefore Akatsuki would be out there trying to search for someone that doesn't exist anymore. "I appreciate it, Kakashi-sensei. Well, I don't know what to say other than thank all of you for being here to see me off. Some of you just now entered in my life, but others were there for me since the academy. Please take care of yourselves and I'll be in touch through letters or when I come back occasionally. Until, then, though it would be unlikely that any of you will be hearing from me" – Said Naruto, earning nods from the group.

Seeing that no one chose to speak any more, Naruto bid them all goodbye and proceeded to walk away from the village. Meanwhile, the group was talking between them about the blonde. "Do you think he'll be okay out there alone?" – Asked Tsunade to which Kakashi replied by saying that he could take care of himself. Iruka was amazed by the blonde's growth since the academy and concluded that the blonde would be every missing-nin's nightmare some time from now. Anko was seizing him up to bottom and remembering the 'interaction' they had together. _Wow, he is even bigger than before…Good luck gaki and come back for more if you like_– Thought Anko as she licked her lips.

* * *

**---With Naruto---**

After about an hour of walking, Naruto looked behind only to see that the village was barely visible anymore. Smiling, he turned again and went forward to his first target of the book. Last night, before going to sleep, Naruto studied the bingo book with care in order to gauge his opponents. Starting from the C level missing-nins, Naruto was stunned to see one man named Nara Shishio listed as C level missing-nin. According to the bingo book, the man was responsible for raping some Konoha civilians and then leaving the girls at the park naked and blood all over their bodies.

Thinking of the Nara clan, Naruto didn't actually know much about them outside their unrivalled skills on shadow manipulation. According to the bingo book, though, Shishio's abilities with the shadow manipulation was limited to the shadow binding, being that the clan's weakest technique ever. Also, it says the man barely received the promotion to chunnin from showing proficiency with suiton ninjutsu, so Naruto would have to be careful of the guy. Naruto was stunned to see that the bingo book wasn't only describing the man's abilities and reason for defection, but also his whereabouts. According to the book, Shishio was found near the border between Wave and Fire Country. Apparently, he was residing in a village close to the border and it wouldn't take long to find him.

Already on the move to Wave Country, Naruto remembered his first trip to Wave Country that took two days travelling. However, that time his team was walking since they were supposed to be escorting a civilian. Now jumping through trees, Naruto was remembering that particular mission and how ill his abilities were at the time. "**Not to mention how much you pissed your pants when the demon brothers attacked you"**– Said Kyuubi on the verge of exploding himself in laughter upon imagining the scene, much to Naruto's discomfort. _'Please refrain from remembering me of moments such as these, okay. At least when Orochimaru was against me, I happen to put a good fight - Thought Naruto, thus talking to the fox in his mind scape. _"**If it weren't for me, you would've become snake food, back then." – **Said Kyuubi, laughing his off right now, making Naruto wish to come inside the cage and shove a **rasenshuriken** up Kyuubi's butt so as to teach a lesson.

It was moments like these that Kyuubi showed his 'fun' side, taunting Naruto and hearing his thoughts about it afterwards. Still, as Naruto travelled towards Wave Country, he couldn't help but think of the time ahead of him. He had Kyuubi to talk to, he could even summon Gamakichi for a little game, but other than that, he really didn't have anyone to talk to. Even worse was the fact that he couldn't mingle very much with others from fear that news of his whereabouts wouldn't be safe anymore. Putting his thought aside for the moment, Naruto focused on the battle ahead. Even though the man was considered a C level missing-nin, Naruto could very well get caught if he wasn't careful.

After a while of travelling, Naruto suddenly heard a sound of woman screaming. Therefore, he went towards the source to see what was happening. Upon arrival, he suddenly clenched his fists in anger at the sight. According to his view from the tree, he could see his target forcing his way into what appeared a brunette civilian, since he couldn't see any head band. Also, no kunoichi would get caught like this, unless it was a group that kidnapped her. Mentally kicking himself in the gut from taking advantage of the raping, Naruto took two kunais from his pouch and carefully aimed against the neck of the shadow user.

Little did Naruto know, however, that the girl was extremely familiar. Tsunami was visiting a couple of friends who were residing in the village closest to the border between Wave and Fire Country when this man captured her by using his shadow. No, she was forever cursing her existence as the man was literally taking advantage of her fragile strength. Tsunami was by no means naïve about such a thing happening to her eventually, however because of the peaceful times in Wave Country, now thanks to a team of Konoha ninjas, she thought she wouldn't have any trouble. However, when this Shishio character caught her, she was defenseless. As the man was sticking his dick inside of her hard, Tsunami was crying like she hadn't cried before in her life. Such an event would forever haunt her.

It didn't help that the guy was laughing at her desperate cries of pain and anger. Suddenly, Tsunami heard a sound of knife piercing flesh and turned to look at the aggressor who was already killed. Looking at the guy's neck, Tsunami almost shouted upon seeing two knifes embedded against the man's neck, almost cutting his head off. Instantly, Tsunami picked whatever clothes remained and cover her body. She was trembling now in unconditional fear. Whoever did this would surely kill her as well. Suddenly, a big man wearing all black and a white mask landed in front of her and looked at the Nara clan member dead. "Serves you right, moron" – Said Naruto as he began to study to see if the man was truly dead before cutting his head off and burn the body. _Should anyone capture this man, the Nara clan would be in serious disadvantage. I have to destroy him. _– Thought Naruto as he took his katana in order to cut his head, however he stopped upon hearing the woman breathing hard and trembling in fear.

Upon looking at the woman, Naruto was appalled to see that the girl was no other than Tsunami, Inari's mother and Tazuna's daughter. _God damn it, what is she doing here? Wave is very far away from here. Was she kidnapped? I must take her to Tazuna, then. Off to Wave Country, then. _"Tsunami-san, don't be scared of me. I was after this guy. Would you please close your eyes for a moment, what I about to do won't be pleasant to the untrained eye" – Said Naruto, calming the woman down a bit, since she kind of recognized the voice, but it seemed a more masculine voice than she remembered. _Naruto, is that you? No it can't be, but how does he knows my name? _– Thought Tsunami, but complied with the man's request.

After Tsunami closed her eyes, Naruto cut the man's head fast, managing to sever the man's head without spilling much blood. Afterwards, he channeled a bit of Kyuubi's chakra and proceeded with the hand seals for **Katon Makai no Kaen **(Fire Style: Hell Blaze Jutsu), exhaling a thin line of fire which upon contact with the body, engulfed it completely in flames. Afterwards, he kept the man's head inside a scroll and summons Gamakichi in order to take the scroll to Konoha for the bounty. After the toad left, Naruto authorized for Tsunami to open her eyes to which she did, only to blink in surprise that where the body of the rapist was located, now only flames could be seen. "Tsunami-san, are you alright?" – Asked Naruto, but was surprised that Tsunami flinched from the sudden touch of his hands. Nonetheless, he sighed and left the woman be for the moment.

He didn't know how to deal with post-traumatic disorder, but he needed to take Tsunami to Tazuna. After a while of waiting for the woman to stop shaking, he heard the faint whispering of his name from the woman and turned to look at her. "Yes it is me Tsunade-san. However, I can't take off my mask out here in the open. Here take my jacket and cover yourself. We'll need to take you back to your house" – Said Naruto before taking off his blouse and handling over to Tsunami who appreciated the gesture and dressed the black jacket. "Thank you Naruto-kun. Once again you come to the rescue, isn't it?" – Asked Tsunami, already breathing more relaxed to which Naruto just nodded.

* * *

**---The Hokage's office---**

Back in Konoha, Tsunade and the Leader of the Hunter-nin division was talking about the new recruit. Tsunade was surprised to see the man complimenting Naruto's abilities both with the sword and ninjutsu. Suddenly when Tsunade was about to open her mouth in agreement towards the man's assessment of Naruto's abilities when Gamakichi appeared in the office, carrying with himself a scroll that Naruto handed to him. "Message from Shi (death) for you Hunter-nin" – Said the toad, handing the scroll to which the man opened and started to read.

_Leader-sama, I found C level missing-nin Nara Shishio on the way to Wave Country, continuing his favorite activity with a civilian. I took advantage of the situation and imbedded his neck with two kunais, thus killing him as per my assignment. Below this letter, lies the kanji for his head. It goes without saying that I already burned his body and by now his ashes must be reaching Iwa by now. _

After reading, the leader smiled behind his mask and released the dead man's head, holding the man's hair with his hands. He began, then, to analyze the man's expression and smiled upon seeing that the man was caught by surprise. Also the leader was surprised by the clean cut near the man's neck, peculiar to a katana. Meanwhile, Tsunade was appalled by the man's smile over seeing a dead man's head, also wondering if Naruto was the one who actually did this. "Uzuki-san, I would appreciate if you didn't do that in front of me, it's rather appalling just to watch." – Said Tsunade to which the man known as Uzuki Gaeshi, Yuugao's uncle, offered his sincere apologies. "My apologies, Tsunade-sama; I was just admiring my new recruit's work some. Gamikichi, take this scroll and hand it to Shi, it will cover the amount for a C ranked missing-nin as well as beating an old record of mine, heehehe. This guy is interesting" – Said Gaeshi before vanishing, leaving Tsunade and Gamakichi alone in the room.

"Gamakichi, when you saw Naruto, did he look disgusted by doing this?" – Asked Tsunade, slightly afraid of seeing someone as Naruto lose his innocence for good. "No Tsunade-sama, bro was quite normal. Although, I'd refrain from judging him because of this; according to bro, this man was raping an old friend of his, so I believe what he did was just. Any way, he must be waiting for me to arrive with the payment." – Said Gamakichi to which Tsunade nodded and then the toad vanished, leaving the blonde hokage alone. _Naruto, you have to attain your level of humanity in order to come alive from this job. The more you kill, the more you'll appreciate doing it again. Be careful out there. _– Thought Tsunade.

* * *

**---With Naruto---**

While Gamakichi was getting his bounty regarding his first kill, Naruto was talking to the older woman now more comfortable to what happened. Since the guy wasn't able to finish the raping, Tsunami would eventually get over it. Would the man finish the job, Tsunami would be scarred for life. The woman was surprised to see this new Naruto in contrast to the one she met almost four years ago. The Naruto she knew had this spark within him that was able to make everyone smile. This one, though, was more reserved, collected and strangely more mature than normally a man would be at his age. Tsunami was also surprised about Naruto's choice of profession, seeing that Naruto would always travel alone, without a soul to talk to or release some stress. At some point, Tsunami asked about the other ones from Naruto's team to which Naruto promptly responded by saying that Sakura and Kakashi were the same as usual and Sasuke was training under a strong ninja. Tsunami wouldn't know of Orochimaru, thus telling her that Sasuke was now a missing-nin wouldn't be really relevant.

When Gamakichi arrived with the bounty and then disappeared, Naruto got up and ushered Tsunami to get up as well. Smiling at him, Tsunami felt a wave of safety and all of that was thanks to the blonde. Somehow, the whole story of being raped was the past and now she would come back to her house and everything would be okay. All thanks to the blonde who by now was her hero. "Are you some kind of angel, Naruto-kun?" – Asked Tsunami, surprising Naruto a lot, from hearing that term for the first time. **"You can see the irony of this isn't it? The one with a demon inside of him being called an angel"**– Said Kyuubi inside his mind. "Angel? I don't think so, just being the right place at the right time." – Said Naruto as he walked towards her house in Wave Country, making Tsunami giggle at the modest comment. "Well, I believe you're an angel that came to help Wave Country and now you saved me from being victim of rape." – Said Tsunami, grabbing Naruto's arm and leaning strangely closer to him.

"_Shit, I was afraid of this happening." _– Thought Naruto to which the fox concurred and manifested. **"Since you're the one who saved her, she's showing feelings to her savior. You're in for quite a ride, there Naruto. However, this Tsunami is quite a looker, don't you think? Maybe you could get a rise at her before dumping her at her father's house"** – Said Kyuubi to which Naruto sighed, seeing that the fox was helpless. _"Pervert Kitsune. That would be wrong. I'll admit she is pretty and all, but she is vulnerable right now. Her head is a mess right now, I can't take advantage of her_" – Thought Naruto, making Kyuubi growl and mumble about stupid blonde and his politically correct behavior.

However, the fox wasn't the problem this time. Naruto was afraid that she would get physical with him, if the whole feeling his arm was any indication. Tsunami for her part was indeed feeling the blonde's arms and was quite mesmerized by the size and shape of Naruto's biceps. Naruto could've sworn at some point, he heard a little moaning from the woman while groping his arms and now his chest. "Tsunami-san, what are you doing?" – Asked Naruto, now getting uncomfortable with the woman's hands caressing his chest. "Ah nothing Naruto-kun, I was just getting to feel your body a little bit. I was under the impression you were enjoying. You aren't dating anyone, are you?" – Asked Tsunami, now making Naruto really uncomfortable. Of course, he liked the feeling of a woman's touch just like any other man, especially one at his age. "Don't get me wrong here Tsunami-san, I was enjoying and no I'm not dating anyone. However you've just been through a traumatic event, therefore what you're doing is just because I was the one who saved you" – Said Naruto, almost on the verge of begging the girl to stop, so as to avoid having to reject her.

"Naruto, I appreciate the concern and all, but I assure you that no feelings will arise from me about you. I just wanted, you know, to release some stress. This was a much stressed situation for me and I'm now in need to blow off some steam. You don't have to worry about me having feelings for you, Naruto-kun. You're a great guy and some day, will make a girl really happy, but right now, I'm needy and I want right now" – Shouted Tsunami, almost on the verge of scandal to which Naruto sighed, seeing no other alternative (yeah, right). "**Just admit that you wanted to have sex with her and you'll feel a lot better" **– Said Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded. "_Man, first Anko, now Tsunami" – Said Naruto to which the fox scowled at him from sounding like complaining. _"**Pure shinobi, I feel so sorry for you. That snake lady almost rocked your world and now this woman is in need for some hot sex. What do you think she'll do to you, hehehee?" **– Asked Kyuubi while laughing like a perverted demon.

"Okay Tsunami-san. We'll be arriving at a village shortly, once there, we'll rent a room" – Said Naruto to which Tsunami nodded and began daydreaming about feeling a man's body for the first time since Kaiza.

* * *

**---At the Hotel---**

After the temporary couple rented a room, Naruto took off his mask for the first time since leaving Konoha. After that, he quickly closed the drapes and turned to see Tsunami approaching him. Naruto was getting excited just by seeing the way the older woman walked sexily at him, swinging her hips in a teasing manner, however Naruto was in control of his body, therefore he waited for Tsunami to come over to him so that they could begin. When the brunette stood face to face with Naruto, she reached his cheeks with her left hand and began caressing it as she landed a fierce kiss on his lips. Naruto, however, was already lost in control, simply because of Tsunami's soft hands caressing his weak spot. After the initiation of the make-out section, Naruto used his both hands and began to caress Tsunami's body by either embracing her or caressing her butt a little bit. Tsunami, upon feeling Naruto caressing her from behind, smiled at the boy…no…man's initiative.

"Aren't you hot inside all these clothes, Naruto-kun? How about we take it off so I can feel your whole body" – Whispered Tsunami in a sexual tone, making Naruto smile and enter the game of teasing he held dear so much. "Of course Tsunami, wouldn't like to keep you waiting, now would I?"- Said Naruto as he took off his jacket and his fishnet shirt, leaving his upper body visible to Tsunami who by chance, began caressing every inch of it with blood running down her noise a little bit. While Tsunami was passing her hand on Naruto's chest, Naruto's hand was already massaging the girl's breasts, making her moan quite a bit, arousing Naruto even more than he was before. Remembering on the whole blowing off some steam, Naruto bent towards her neck and began to lick, earning more moans from the brunette. Not one to lose a teasing battle, Tsunami grabbed Naruto's hair and pulled it, sending his head up, leaving his neck wide open for attack.

After she initiated the tongue sequence, Naruto pretty much lost control of his will. The way Tsunami was sucking his neck, Naruto was proud to say that he never felt better in his entire life. "You like this, don't you Naruto-kun? You like how my tongue licks your entire body." – Teased Tsunami, who in turn was thrilled to have such control on a man like Naruto. "You know, if you ask nicely, I can do the same thing down there for you" – Said Tsunami before her hand grabbed Naruto's dick from outside the pants and began to massage it smoothly, making Naruto shiver in excitement and anticipation. "That would be great, however I have something else to do first" – Whispered Naruto close to her ear and began to massage the area in which her pussy was located, making Tsunami moan in excitement and also smiling at Naruto's experience. "You know Tsunami; you are wearing way too many clothes. Care to take it all off" – Said Naruto to which the brunette complied and took her kimono off, leaving nothing on her body; making Naruto tremble in pleasure.

"Like what you say, I presume. So how about you, aren't you going to take it off" – Said Tsunami, quietly hoping to see Naruto's hard dick emerge from his pants; however Naruto said no with his finger and ushered the woman to lay down on the bed for what he was about to do to her. Not one to complain, Tsunami lay down and open her legs, letting Naruto's tongue enter her inner walls. The result was Tsunami moaning and moaning, being the sound of it louder and louder by the second. After a while, Tsunami was grabbing Naruto's hair, while screaming his name in pure pleasure. "Yes, continue…continue…Oh sweet kami this is wonderful" – Shouted Tsunami, however she was taken aback when Naruto lifted her from the bed and laid down where she was. Calling for her to rest her pussy at his mouth while sucking his cock at the same time, Tsunami was already touching herself in anticipation to Naruto's firm cock inside of her.

Naruto found that Tsunami's tongue abilities were amazing and while him was pleasuring her while licking her inner walls; Tsunami was doing a rather fine job sucking every inch of his cock. However, Naruto's licking proved to be too much for the older woman who took his dick off her mouth and started screaming in pure lust. "Oh my god…I'm cumming….Wow this is terrific…oh my god" – Mumbled Tsunami as she came at Naruto's face hard. "uhhh, Naruto-kun you made me cum and now it's my time to make you cum, isn't it? Now please tell me you've brought a condom along with you?" – Asked Tsunami to which Naruto smiled and handed the protective rubber to the girl who smiled deviously in response.

After opening with cautious, so as not to waste it, Tsunami grabbed Naruto's cock and put the condom in, guaranteeing their night for good. After that, Tsunami grabbed Naruto's cock and placed it inside her pussy before proceeding with the up and down movement. To say Tsunami was surprised with the feeling, it would be an understatement. When Naruto's cock filled every inch inside of her, Tsunami could only scream out of pleasure. It didn't help the fact that Naruto bent over and start sucking her nipples while he was humping the brunette. "Wow, Naruto-kun I never knew you're so experienced at this. You….already made me cum and now your cock will make me cum another time as well. Please go faster" – Mumbled Tsunami to which Naruto complied and speed things up a bit, making Tsunami shout even more in pure lust. "Kami, it's so amazing. This…feeling…is so amazing." – Shouted Tsunami as she was now holding her hair with her hands while feeling Naruto's cock filling her up inside.

After a long fucking section, Tsunami and Naruto switched positions and the brunette was on all fours this time. Getting the picture, Naruto kneeled behind the woman and thrust his cock slowly to which Tsunami moaned. "Oh my god, it's so good." – Mumbled Tsunami to which Naruto felt like saying a word or two. "Tsunami-chan, you're so tight inside. It's a wonderful sensation" – Said Naruto, earning Tsunami's nodding and proceed to watch Naruto's movements while taking her from behind. Tsunami, after a few of Naruto's insertions, was beginning to squeeze the sheets from barely able to hold her own against Naruto's cock. "Oh sweet kami, I'm cumming…I'm cumming again" – Shouted Tsunami as her inner walls squeezed Naruto's cock inside, making it difficult for him to hold his own, thus having to release the pressure inside the condom.

It went without saying that Tsunami was indeed able to blow off some steam.


	4. Tough opponent

**Chapter 4 – Tough opponent**

After dropping Tsunami in Wave Country, Naruto was now seated on the beach contemplating his next target in the bingo book. However memories of dropping Tsunami came in full view and he knew now that his chosen path was the right one for him. He couldn't afford to be seen anywhere that might endanger his plan of being blown.

**Flashback on**

_After Tsunami and Naruto had their way together, Tsunami went to the shower so as to get cleaned up. Between the raping in the woods and the sweat sex making with the blond, she could say a bath was needed. However as she entered, memories of the one to whom she just had sex with, be nothing more than a child three years earlier. Tsunami, never in her life, saw someone change from child to grownup in just three years and this scared her a little bit. __When the water came down, though, Tsunami smiled upon being able of doing this yet again;_ _however because of her savior, she would be able to see her family again and do all the things she most treasured in life. _

_When she got out, she was surprised to see that the blond was already dressed and wearing his mask, while telling her to speed things up. "Tsunami, we have to go. I can't stay any longer than this. I need to be on the move and I need to take you back to Tazuna's house" – __Whispered Naruto to which the woman nodded and then the two went out of the room. Once Naruto paid for the room, he and Tsunami were on the way to Tazuna's house. _

_After a while, the Great Naruto Bridge was upon them and Naruto couldn't help but show his surprise at the name while Tsunami giggled. "I told you are our hero, Naruto. My father dedicated this bridge to you in sign for your efforts in beating Gato as well as returning light into Inari's eyes, thus the villagers. Come, our house is no longer where you thought it was" – Shouted Tsunami to which Naruto complied and followed the woman to Tazuna's house. "Tsunami, when we are inside, please don't tell Tazuna or Inari, who I am" – Said Naruto, earning a look of surprise from the woman who didn't see that coming. "Why not? Inari would be thrilled to see you. What's the matter?" – Asked Tsunami, though shocked by hearing what Naruto said to her. _

"_I can't let your family be submitted to interrogation just so that my enemies can find me and trust me they have eyes everywhere" - Said Naruto to which Tsunami sighed but complied with the request. When the woman knocked the door, Tazuna was the one who answered and immediately hugged his daughter. "Tsunami-chan, you're home. I was so worried about you leaving, was your trip okay? Who is this fellow with the mask? Is he a ninja?" – Asked Tazuna to which Tsunami responded. "Unfortunately, father, a missing-nin captured me and tried raping me. This hunter-nin here saved me and brought me back here" – Said Tsunami while pointing to Naruto who in turn, turned to study the drunk in front of him to see if he would be able to recognize the blond. _

_Tazuna looked at the man and hugged him while screaming words of appreciation over and over. "Tsunami-chan, I'm sorry but the next time you travel, I'll be calling Konoha for an escort mission. We can't let that happen again. Ah, hunter-nin don't you want to come in and have something?" – Asked Tazuna showing his hospitality to which Naruto waved if off. "No thanks Tazuna-san, I believe I would be interrupting your privacy. Also, I have some business to attend to" – Said Naruto to which the old man nodded and said his good bye to the shinobi. Naruto greeted everyone goodbye and fixed his eyes on Tsunami to say a silent thank you to which the woman acknowledged and nodded in response. _

**Flashback off**

Naruto was able to recognize some people looking at him in suspicion while in Wave, so he needed to vanish. After that, he appeared on the beach and took his bingo book for his next target. Using a red pen, he made a huge cross on Nara Shishio's page indicating that he was already killed, thus moving onto the next page. C ranked missing-nin called Makoto Shinji was banned from Konoha because of the murder of his genin comrade on a mission near Tea Country. At the time, Shinji blamed the enemy for casting a genjutsu on him, thus manipulating him to kill his comrade. However, according to the report made by the responsible jounin at the time, stated that no genjutsu was ever casted, and thus eliminating the man's only line of defense. As for his location, his last whereabouts were near Suna Village, where he tried establishing himself within one of their villages.

_Huh, I think I'll pay a visit to Gaara, maybe he has some information about the man _– Thought Naruto as he got up and left Wave Country by once again passing through the bridge that was nominated after him, even though if it wasn't for Kakashi, Zabuza would have killed all of them without even breaking a sweat. However there was something he wouldn't ever say it to the silver man's face. After stepping his foot on Fire Country, he picked up a map and draw his trip to Suna. From where he stood, he would have to cross the entire Fire Country, then passing by River Country, thus enter the desert that is Wind Country. After a day perhaps a day and a half, he would reach the hidden village. **"Remember that you're not supposed to be seen, so you'll need to contact the Kazekage without anyone from the village seeing you**" – Advised Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded and thought. _I know that, I'll just have to figure something out when I arrive there, Wind Country is very big; I'd be searching for Shinji endlessly._ – Thought Naruto to which the Kyuubi turned to think. **"Presenting yourself as a hunter-nin from Konoha would draw suspicions, however if you try getting in by using henge than I believe it's safer" **– Said the fox.

_In order for that to work, though, I'll have to sneak in the village from another way other than the gate. I'll need to stay in a hotel and then reach Gaara _- Thought Naruto to which the kyuubi manifested his consent and proceeded on his trip. Crossing Fire Country would take a day if he uses chakra to give a little push. That being said, Naruto channeled some chakra through his feet and started the trip. Along the way, he was focusing chakra on his nose as well in order to sense when danger would arise.

* * *

**---In Konoha---**

Tsunade was reading some report about a mission when Kakashi arrived to talk. "What can I do for you, Kakashi" – Said Tsunade to which Kakashi took his eyes off his book and looked at the blonde hokage. "Are we going on that line, Tsunade-sama? I need to know the fake story so Sakura won't ask. Also, I believe that we need to contact Kurenai and Shikamaru, seeing that he is now the one responsible for Team 10" – Asked Kakashi to which Tsunade sighed and nodded with the jounin. Also call Jiraya, he'll need to run some counter-intelligence on this one" – Said Tsunade.

After all were gathered in the room, Tsunade addressed them all at once. "Greeting everyone, I called this meeting to discuss Naruto's situation inside of Konoha. Shikamaru, even though you're not a jounin yet, you are here as responsible for Team 10. Some of you know and some of you don't, but Naruto, since two days ago, became a hunter-nin for Konoha. Also, yesterday I received his first victim. Nara Shishio was expelled from Konoha from being responsible of many rapes throughout Konoha, Naruto caught him trying to rape yet another girl and he was eliminated" – Said Tsunade, before earning a look of surprise from Shikamaru who could only mean that he knew the man. "Before you ask, Shikamaru, he was your half uncle. Also, I'm here to tell all the ones who don't yet know that he chose this job so as to take Akatsuki off Konoha. However, in order for them not to know about Naruto, he proposed ensuring him a mission to meet the pervert here's spy network. Now as to his real documentation, it will be locked inside this office at all times. As of this moment, Naruto's whereabouts will be labeled as a B ranked level secret, only until he returns to being a regular shinobi, any questions?" – Asked Tsunade, but surprisingly Kurenai only nodded and Shikamaru was silent.

"Kurenai-san, I understand if you're uncomfortable talking about h…" – Said Tsunade but was interrupted by the woman who smiled and addressed everyone. "It's not that Hokage-sama. I realized that the death of Asuma was what drove me to say all those things to Naruto and I apologized to him. Also, he told me of the hunter-nin position. However, I'm afraid to say I tried to convince him to back off the position, but he didn't even listen to me. That kid only bother going forward, thus not dwelling on the past. I thought that he would have trouble but I guess I was wrong" – Said Kurenai to which Tsunade smiled and turned to explain a little thing about Naruto's job. "Only for your knowledge, I'll be explaining some aspects of Naruto's job. First, Naruto received two books, one being the bingo book of our missing-nins and another that all hunter-nins and Anbus have it as well that is a gathering of missing-nins from all of the elemental nations. His targets are the one from the bingo book and he receives the reward that anyone would receive by killing the man. So far, Naruto is on the C ranked pages, thus killing only the ones he can beat. After a while, he'll start taking on B ranked, then A ranked. However, I intend to revoke his hunter-nin license when he reaches the S ranked ones. As of right now, only three ninjas are listed as S ranked missing-nin and those are Uchiha Sasuke, Uchiha Itachi and Orochimaru" – Said Tsunade to which Kakashi nodded and this time Jiraya moved in.

"I wouldn't agree with you on this point Tsunade-hime. You forgot that you're not talking about Naruto anymore. This new being has the body of Uzumaki Naruto, but the mind of both him and the fox, thus he is now proficient in fighting against any type of enemy. My guess is that the fox wouldn't want a weak vessel, so he will stop at nothing to bring Naruto into shape in order to battle against the S ranked level missing-nins. According to Naruto himself, he used the two month training in order to improve his fuuton affinity and also learn the katon affinity that is peculiar to the fox. Also, I found that Naruto was caring a katana, so Kyuubi must be teaching him a kenjutsu style that could help him. Now, I'll be running some counter-intelligence and be constantly filling his mission report with fake locations of my spy network. This way we'll be able to keep Akatsuki from capturing Naruto and also find who is spying for Akatsuki, within these walls" – Said Jiraya, earning surprised looks from Kurenai and Shikamaru. "How can you know that someone is passing information to Akatsuki?" – Asked Shikamaru to which Tsunade choose to answer.

"We have reasons to believe that Akatsuki is receiving information regarding the village's situations. It was strange how just after Konoha was victorious after the Sound/Sand invasion, Itachi and Kisame was here and try to capture Naruto. Also, Jiraya's spy network warned him about Akatsuki mobilizing towards Fire Country after leaving Kumo where they managed to capture the two tailed jinchuuriki. We don't know if Orochimaru also has a spy inside Konoha as well, but we are sure Akatsuki has one and we'll use Naruto's fake mission in order to find him" – Said Tsunade, before earning a nod from Shikamaru. "Tsunade-sama, how did he go on his first one? I mean, although I wasn't around much, he's still my student" – Asked Kakashi with his head down to which Tsunade recognized it as guilt. "Kakashi, I don't know if you'll be proud of him or disgusted, but according to the Hunter-nin in charge of the program, Naruto severed the man's head by using his sword, also he was admired by the clean cut of the man's head. To a hunter-nin, Naruto was efficient, to a human being, I would say he was vicious" – Said Tsunade to which Kakashi nodded.

"I'd say he was more human than you think Tsunade-sama. As you said, Shishio was raping someone when Naruto caught him, so he had it coming. Naruto doesn't kill just for the kill, at least from what I know of him" – Said Kakashi to which Tsunade nodded. "I just hope you're right Kakashi. Being a hunter-nin for so long can really change a man and even though the missing-nin deserves punishment, a hunter-nin won't take anything to consideration and just kill him should the opportunity arise" – Said Tsunade to which everyone nodded except Shikamaru. "This was the path he chose by himself for himself. Maybe he'll become a vicious killer, maybe he'll become the only capable of dealing against our toughest opponents. It's too troublesome but as Kurenai-san said so herself, Naruto only looks forward and won't stop at nothing so that his goal, whatever that is, can be fulfilled" – Said Shikamaru, once again receiving nods from the group. "We all hope so, Shikamaru" – Concluded Jiraya.

* * *

**---With Naruto---**

Back to the hunter-nin, he was already half away from reaching River Country, so he decided to take a rest. While resting for a bit, Naruto was considering his next step for training. Even with the two months training, he knew he could take a B level missing-nin, however A and S ones were obviously ten times as tough, so he needed to train and gain more knowledge. **"You needn't worry about kenjutsu and katon ninjutsu training; I have plenty of material for us to practice. However, we have to do something about your affinity. As of right now, I believe you have the equivalent of fuuton chakra control as of a Suna chunnin. You need to be on pair with a jounin in terms of skill to be able to beat A ranked missing-nins. Maybe you could ask this Gaara person if we would share some exercises or at least two high leveled fuuton techniques" **– Told Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded but was somewhat uncomfortable with simply entering and asking for the Kazekage to share his village's secrets, thus sending the impression of espionage.

However, he thought that asking wouldn't hurt to ask. After 30 minutes have passed, Naruto got up and continued his trip. While travelling, he was considering the last time he was in River Country and the time Gaara was captured by Akatsuki. He knew that River Country was famous for its hot springs. So he would find a hotel near one and simply relax a bit, even If he has to do it under a henge. A couple hours later, he was crossing the border of River Country and out to find a place to stay for the night. Camping outside was out of the question, since he, then, needed to be on guard for possible threats and wouldn't be able to rest at all. After finding a hotel with hot springs, Naruto asked for a room.

Quickly shutting the drapes, so as not to call attention, he took his mask off together with his clothes so as to take a nice long bath. He let go of the idea of joining the hot springs simply because it would be extremely tiring to use henge, thus not being able to rest. **"All you need is a couple hours of sleeping while I take away the strain on your muscles from the trip" – **Said Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded and proceeded with the shower. After that, he summoned some sleeping clothes and just let his eyes slowly close as he got accustomed to a nice bed.

* * *

**---The next day---**

The next day, Naruto woke up and without further delay; he changed into his hunter-nin clothes and checked out of the hotel, not even bothering to have breakfast. Quickly finding a dango stand, Naruto bought a few and eat while on the way to Wind Country. Unfortunately, Naruto wasn't aware of how large River Country actually was, so he couldn't know how much time he would take to cross the country. However, he knew that he needed all his rest to cross the desert and reach Suna, so he chose to find another place to stay near the border between River and Wind Country. "**Take your time, Naruto and let's get some practice before you proceed with your trip. Find an open and secure place. When you find it, summon ten clones to learn a new katon jutsu that I remembered seeing it once. Also, I'll be adding five more pounds on each of your limbs so it will be kenjutsu training combined with strength and speed as well" – **Said Kyuubi to which Naruto at first complained, however he complied in the end since he would have to see a place at the end of the day anyway.

"**Right, now that you found the place, the jutsu is called Katon Kasumi Enbu no Jutsu **(Fire Style: Mist Waltz Jutsu) **and what it does is create a large combustible mist that when in contact with fire, it will ignite in an explosion. I'll send the hand seals sequence through your brain and some explanations for you to practice on, however this jutsu must require some flame to ignite, otherwise it won't do any good" – **Said Kyuubi to which Naruto complied, thus summoning the needed clones to perform the technique. "**Now, it's time to raise the weights a little bit" **– Said Kyuubi.

After the process was completed, Naruto kneeled down a bit because of the extra-weight and slowly lifted. When he got accustomed to the weight, he took his katana and travelled through the katas that Kyuubi taught him. While he was doing that, the clones were trying the new jutsu; however none of them were getting even closer to perfecting the technique. One clone did manage to blow a thin layer that resembled combustion mist, but other than that no such luck. "**For this jutsu to work, you have to do the seals perfectly and then gather the most amount of air inside your lungs as you can and simply blow it"**- Said Kyuubi as he instructed the clones to try it once again.

While the clones were going at it, Naruto was dancing with his sword as he viciously slashed through every single imaginary opponent that went to face him. By now, Naruto's proficiency with the sword was enough to be a chunnin level, however in order for him to become a jounin in terms of skill with the sword; experience would be the only training method available.

After a while of slashes, Naruto stopped to rest a little bit and looked at his clones when suddenly a huge combustion mist appeared from the mouth of one clone and the other threw an exploding tag in it, thus creating a rather large explosion in front of the clones. "**Jutsu mastered, Naruto. Now rest for 10 minutes and then let's head to the desert" **- Ordered Kyuubi, making Naruto snort at the fox for acting like he was the boss or something like that. **"You'll learn to respect me, pathetic imbecile, I'm teaching you all these and I expect that you treat me with respect"** – Shouted Kyuubi to which Naruto sighed and explained to the fox.

_Never had I disrespected you, baka kitsune. It was just that the last thing you said sounded more like an order _- Thought Naruto to which Kyuubi ignored and cut off the link, leaving Naruto to talk to himself. Ignoring the fox's bitching, Naruto rest for a little while and then got up to head towards Wind Country. On the way, Naruto was considering how he could improve the control of his fuuton chakra, since he already made the two exercises required for being able to perform fuuton ninjutsu.

"**Why not controlling the air?" – **Asked Kyuubi as in barging in Naruto's thinking. _How can someone control the air? There just isn't possible, is it?_ – Thought Naruto as in wondering if fuuton users could somehow manipulate the air molecules to the point of molding it. **"A few ancient fuuton users in the past were able to control the air to an extent, but I never put my hand in this, because it's not within my elemental limits. Nevertheless, imagine the possibilities of being able to control the air. You can make the air thicker by adding chakra or make it lighter where you can flow. You could also control it to the point of being able to increase air pressure or even gravity if you concentrate hard enough" **– Mumbled Kyuubi some of his knowledge to which Naruto smiled at the prospect of being able to do such a thing.

**However, as you know or do not know, air molecules are consisted of oxygen and hydrogen, thus being the molecules that, while together, generate water. I believe that the Nidaime Hokage was able to use suiton ninjutsu just by using the air molecules, thus generating water. I don't know if you have to learn suiton manipulation in order to be able to control air"** – Thought Kyuubi to which Naruto asked a question. _If what you're saying its right, then I wouldn't need to worry about hydrogen, since my interest wouldn't be generating water. My interest would be to control the wind that travels throughout the air, thus don't need to gather air inside my lungs. _– Thought Naruto to which Kyuubi nodded**. "You are on to something here, Naruto. If you were able to use the wind around us instead of gathering it in your lungs, then the attacks will be much faster and precise. Not to mention that chakra won't be an issue here since you got plenty to use" **– Said the fox.

_Well, what can I do to sense the wind around me, then? – _Asked Naruto before hearing the noise of the fox thinking. **"You pathetic humans can't feel it like I do; otherwise your control would much better by now. You'd have to try meditation. Only by closing your eyes and relaxing your chakra flow, can you sense the wind passing by. However, to attain such form of relaxation, you'd have to be patient. It's not just that close your eyes; you'll need some time standing still, with a clear mind and a clear spirit. Only then, can you feel it" **– Said Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded and already envisioned himself standing still. _Won't work, fox. I have too much chakra to just ease the chakra circulation_ – Complained Naruto.

"**That's why I say it isn't easy, imbecile. Air is a force of nature; therefore, you have to be one with the air. Only then, can you feel the air around you" **– Concluded Kyuubi, earning a nod from Naruto who didn't even notice he was staring at the River/Wind Country Border in front of him. Looking around, he was glad he found an inn right on his left.

* * *

**---With Jiraya---**

After getting out of Tsunade's office, Jiraya initiated his counter-intelligence mission towards Naruto. He already gave false information about Naruto being in Tea Country meeting some people and then would head straight to Marsh Country where he would meet another group. However, Jiraya wasn't counting on Naruto actually being where he informed. Being that, he summoned Gamakichi in order to see where the gaki was located right now.

"**Hey where's bro? Why do you summon me pervert?" **– Shouted Gamakichi as he looked down at the sannin. Gamakichi, just like Naruto, grew up and now stood a great 20 feet of height. Of course, that didn't mean Jiraya wasn't offended and found the lack of respect to be rather infuriating. "You better treat me with respect Gaki, or else I'll tell your father" – Shouted Jiraya as he crossed his arms. "**My dad? I wouldn't do that if I were you. He was the one who taught me what a pervert you really are and the bro just confirmed the story" **– Laughed Gamakichi before seeing the look of surprise by the sannin.

"Forget about that. I need you to inform me of Naruto's whereabouts? Where is he now and where is he heading?" **– **Asked Jiraya to which Gamakichi promptly answered. **"Right now, he is at the border between River and Wind Country. He'll be heading to a village near Suna in order to capture the second missing-nin in the bingo book, named Shinji something, I don't know"** – Said Gamakichi to which Jiraya nodded and smiled since his counter-intelligence was in full force. Now, the only thing left to do was to spread the counter-intelligence information so that his spy network can spread the false information. Jiraya would never think of such plan and he actually enjoyed this counter-intelligence position.

* * *

**---The next day---**

The next day, Naruto checked out of the inn and was not stepping on the desert when his fellow toad appeared. Gamakichi appeared in his mini-form and informed of Jiraya's conversation yesterday and him asking where Naruto was at the moment. Gamakichi also informed that for Jiraya's counter-intelligence to work, Naruto would have to inform the pervert where he would be heading so that Jiraya could spread the information that Naruto's located on the other side of the elemental nations.

Upon hearing this, Naruto nodded and appreciated the info. Before leaving, though, Gamakichi extended a question made by his father Gamabunta as to why he wasn't summoned in a while. Naruto, then, informed that because of his identity being a secret, summoning the toad boss would ruin everything. Naruto, then, assured Gamakichi that once he has the ability to face Akatsuki, he'd summon the boss.

Satisfied with the answer, Gamakichi vanished, thus leaving Naruto to begin his travel towards Suna. The desert was tricky to pass by because of some sand storms that seems to appear out of nowhere, however as he travelled, Naruto channeled chakra through his ears in order to hear some loud manifestations of wind so as to know when a hurricane is coming his way. He remembered the last time he went to the place and figured that it would take at least two or three hours before the village is visible.

After a while of travelling, Naruto stopped to see the valley where the village was located right in front of him. Focusing chakra through his eyes so as to see any traps that may pinpoint his location, Naruto frowned as his eyes caught sight of several seals in front of him which could only be chakra detection seals or a trap of sort to catch the infiltrator. "**For you to be able to pass these seals undetected, you'll need some teachings in the art of fuuinjutsu, Naruto. Although it's kind of a lost art to you humans, fuuinjutsu masters are feared throughout the elemental nations from being unpredictable. Maybe you can ask that sannin you call him Ero-Sennin to lend you some material"** – Explained Kyuubi.

_Okay, but if I were to pass by this without fuuinjutsu knowledge, what should I do?_ – Asked Naruto, before hearing the fox speaking. **"Oh it's pretty easy once you realize the seal's location. Just mold chakra towards the seal's direction and disrupt the chakra that happens to make the seal work. It's kind of like dispelling genjutsu, however instead of disrupting the flow of chakra all over your body, you'll have to focus on a certain point, say the seal"** – Taught Kyuubi to which Naruto turned to think about it for a moment. The blond was beating himself right now over not worrying to learn more about disrupting genjutsu when he could and now he had to improvise.

Reaching a conclusion, Naruto sighed and started counting how much seals there were to be dispelled. When he counted the last one, he was surprised that only five of them were positioned on this side of the valley. **"I don't think they'd realize that someone would enter the village through the top of the valley. Now, focus on the seal and say Fuuin Kai **(Seal Release)" – Explained Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded and began the seal dispelling. After breaking the first one, Naruto realized his mistake as all the four started to glow which indicated a trap. **"Quick Naruto, the seals are linked with each other. You have to disrupt all four of them as quickly as possible"** – Shouted the fox.

Not wanting to lose one of them, Naruto summoned three kage bunshins and sent them to disrupt the other three while he would disrupt the forth one. Letting the air he didn't know he was holding Naruto looked at the village from above for a place to land until he could reach the ground. Observing the village for a while, he found that he was right in front of a dead alley that practically no one would see him land. Quickly dashing to the nearest landing point, Naruto began his movements down the valley until he reached the ground safely. Looking around for any shinobi or kunoichi that could spot him, he found that no one was around.

He could say he was lucky to spot a hotel nearby, but considering what he's been through his whole life; luck wouldn't be the word to describe it. So, he went into the hotel, while in a henge and picked up a room. After he entered the room, he went to the balcony and turned to investigate the distance to get to the Kazekage tower undetected. He knew that Gaara was a night person from not being able to sleep when Shukaku was inside of him, so he knew he could sneak into the tower undetected at night and have a nice conversation with his friend, the kazekage.

* * *

**---At night---**

Looking at the village at night, he was surprised to see quite a lot of shinobi doing some patrols around the village; however he knew the reason to this. Deidara of Akatsuki was able to pretty much approach the kazekage tower without anyone seeing him, so Gaara must have tightened security so that no one can come in here. **"Foxes are the most cunning of animals, Naruto. Why do you think you were able to get in placed undetected or escape jounins and Anbus before starting to learn about being a shinobi"** – Said Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded and turned to leave the building and charge towards the kazekage tower.

As Naruto quickly dashed around, avoiding security, he found that the ones doing patrol, wasn't all experienced since they only turned when Naruto was already far away from such place. However, because of this being like second nature to him, Naruto didn't need any chakra, therefore, being quite difficult to detect his presence, except by actually seeing him. After a while of evading security, he was now in front of the kazekage tower. Looking up, he jumped towards the roof in order to reach Gaara's office through the window.

Landing on the roof presumably unseen, he was surprised to see that Gaara was in front of him with his arms crossed. _So much for infiltration _- Thought Naruto as he looked at his friend. "What are you doing here Naruto?" – Asked Gaara with a monotone voice to which Naruto lifted from the ground. "I wanted to talk to you for a little bit. Mind giving me a minute of a kage's time?" – Asked Naruto, earning a simple nod from Gaara.

After Gaara nodded, began explaining what happened since they last seen each other and his decision towards Akatsuki. Upon hearing this, Gaara was actually surprised for the first time in his life. However he let Naruto continue his story so that afterwards he could ask questions. When Naruto finished saying that he was after Shinji, Gaara lifted his eyebrow at the mention of the name and told that Suna was after this man as well. To say that Naruto was surprised it would be an understatement. He thought about talking to Gaara about the man for some information about his more precise whereabouts, but never would he guess that the man was wanted in Suna as well.

"In Konoha, he's considered a C level missing-nin; however I have the feeling that he's more than that, since you guys want him too. What did he do to earn Suna's trail?" – Asked Naruto to which Gaara crossed his arms and turned to answer. "Shinji broke in recently and stole one of the village's most precious scrolls. The scroll was created by Nidaime Kazekage who was a legend in wind manipulation. Some said that he could control the air, but that was never proved since none of the enemies he presumably used, lived to tell. The scroll related the third exercise needed to fully manipulate fuuton ninjutsu. Since you're hunting him, I'll come with you since the scroll is Suna's possession and quite frankly, I'm quite bored with doing paperwork all the time" – Said Gaara.

"Do you happen to know where he is, then?" – Asked Naruto to which Gaara nodded. However, Gaara was already forgetting something and extremely important about the blonds' presence. Gaara forgot that Naruto didn't enter through the door nor was he escorted here which meant that he sneaked in. "Yes I know where he is, however I'm not sure as to why and how you were able to reach this place undetected." – Said Gaara before seeing Naruto scratch his head in annoyance, indicating that he didn't have much of a choice, which he in fact didn't.

"In case you didn't listen, I can't be seen by anyone, so I had to sneak in without anyone seeing me. As to how, I'll leave it up to you to figure out" – Mumbled Naruto as he shrugged his shoulders as in not his problem, earning quite the angry face from Gaara, which resembled that of Shukaku. "Okay, I'll tell you. First, I entered the village from the top and then dashed towards the non-populated area of the village. After that, I hide inside a nearby hotel and waited for night to appear. When said time approached, I came here without any of your guard noticing me" – Explained Naruto as though it was the simplest thing in the world.

However, the kazekage wasn't so thrilled since his village once again suffered a breach in security, which meant that no matter how much trouble he had coming up with a solution to this problem, once again one man was able to sneak in and once again reach the Kazekage's office without anyone noticing. Naruto, after noticing that Gaara was in deep thinking, sighed and turned to question the man about the missing-nin. "Naruto, I'm afraid I won't be able to guide you through this hunting because of your little breaking in. So, I'll be asking you a favor and return the scroll that is rightfully Suna's possession" – Asked Gaara to which made Naruto think.

"I'll do it. Also, seeing that my affinity is wind, I am in need of further perfecting such manipulation. I've already done the two exercises needed, but I know I don't have what it takes to fully control it. Could you offer me some advice?" – Asked Naruto to which Gaara turned to think. Being the Wind Shadow of his village, he was well aware of how fuuton ninjutsu worked and how could a person increase its control, however such information would be limited to Suna, thus sharing with the blond would act as treason. "Sorry Naruto, but such information is considered Suna's secret, thus I can't reveal it. I'm well aware of your problem with your new fuuton technique and how much pain was caused, since every aspect of Akatsuki is shared between the villages. So, I can't help you" – Said Gaara to which Naruto nodded as in dismissing the issue.

"Okay, just tell me where the guy is and tell me where and who should I deliver the scroll?" – Asked the blond before seeing Gaara vanish for a while and then appear. "This first scroll contains the map of the man's location. After you retrieve the scroll, just send it here via summon as I'm sure you have a contract with the toads" – Said Gaara, earning a nod from Naruto who in turn said his goodbye and jumped back to the ground in order to leave Suna through the same way he entered, thus leaving Gaara to analyze the blonds' escape for future references, regarding security.

* * *

**---With Naruto---**

After getting some safe distance from the village, Naruto looked at the map in order to find Shinji's location and perhaps the scroll containing fuuton ninjutsu training. Looking at the direction needed, he stored the map inside his weapon holster and charged towards the destination. It wasn't long until he stood in front of what appeared to be a deserted village in the middle of the desert.

According to the bingo book, the man was quite proud of a peculiar line of cloth that consisted of a vest that resembled a Konoha chunnin vest, although in black color. However, upon looking at the handful of people that appeared on the streets, Naruto sighed seeing that the man wouldn't simply be walking around, waiting for someone to kill him. After all, he isn't a missing-nin for nothing. Another aspect of the job of being a hunter-nin is understand what a missing-nin thinks; what he does to stay out of trouble and what he doesn't. Even though this man was Naruto's second hunt, the blond was already catching a few hints regarding C ranked missing-nins at least.

He knew now that this type of missing-nins are in a lot ways compared to criminals with shinobi training, simply because a criminal doesn't stop committing crimes, so it would be easy to spot them out of the crowd. However, as the rank was higher, the more difficult it would be to find a missing-nin. The B ones and higher know how to avoid giving signals of his presence and some are able to cast genjutsu to trick the pursuer into believing that the person isn't there. Luckily, the blond had another pair of eyes to see in case he didn't see. Of course, Naruto wasn't seeing this as an advantage, seeing that the damn fox is in favor of sometimes make fun of its host. "**Don't blame me meat bag, just your presence is enough for me to fall on the ground from laughing so much"** **– **Laughed Kyuubi to which Naruto snorted at the fox.

_I swear, one of these days I'll get in there and shove a rasengan right up your ass – _Thought Naruto before hearing laughter from the fox; however it was more because of the impossible threat by the blond. **"I'd like to see you try, Naruto. Also, I'm inside of you, moron; either I or you can't hurt the other physically. So that being said, the only thing you can do to me is either having a stronger killer intent or winning on a verbal discussion between us. Since it will be virtually impossible for the first to happen, I'd say you stick to the second and we'll go from there" **– Said Kyuubi before realizing that the damn brat stopped listening before he finished the explanation. _**Stupid brat, no respect**_**. **

Outside the mental link, Naruto sighed seeing that it will be a long time before he accomplishes to win an argument against a 10.000 years old demon fox. Focusing on the task in hand, he turned left only to stop in front of the village's bar. Quickly using a henge as not to arouse suspicion, Naruto entered the bar disguised as a samurai with long hair and an eye patch, wearing a white kimono. Upon entering, he gauged the crowd that turned their attention to see the newcomer. Not wanting to draw attention to him, Naruto quickly went to the bartender and ordered some hot sake. Naruto wasn't fond of drinking, simply because of having to drag the stupid toad sannin from almost every bar they went because the man couldn't even carry himself.

While the water was preparing Naruto's beverage, he turned to study the public so as to look for his prey. Suddenly, he saw a man that was drinking his third bottle of sake that happen to wear a black vest. Looking once again at the picture from the bingo book, Naruto recognized the man as being the one who is wanted dead in Konoha. After zipping the sake down his throat, he paid the man and called him to ask a question about the man on the other side of the balcony. The bartender, first, looked at Naruto with suspicion, but quickly dismissed from being extra paranoid and turned to reply. According to the man, he didn't know the man's name; however upon hearing that the man came from Kumo, the blond realized that the man wasn't who he was looking for.

However, when Naruto asked if the man came alone, Naruto was satisfied to know that the man had a twin brother who was expelled from Konoha from murdering a fellow ninja. Also, Naruto learned that the man would be arriving soon since he likes to wait a bit of time before starting to get drunk. Thanking the man, Naruto got up and left the bar so as to wait for the man to approach. However, he didn't need to wait long as a man identical to the one in the bar appeared some distance away. Seeing that the street was now empty except for the two of them, Naruto stopped the henge and charged the man while making hand signs in order to push him away from the commotion. **Fuuton Daitoppa** (Wind Style: Great Breakthrough Jutsu).

By the time the man sensed fuuton chakra, he was already caught by the strong gust of wind, thus flying backwards. While flying, the man was mentally cursing himself from lowering his defenses and gets caught by the technique. Although the landing was quite rough, Shinji got up and started to assess this time's opponent. "Konoha again bothering me, don't you people have more to do?" – Shouted Shinji to which Naruto lifted his shoulders and answered. "I can't help it, you know. It's my job to hunt you people, you understand that right. Trust me, they are plenty stuff for me to do than having to track you down and kill you. Do you know how hard it is for us to travel all around just to find one imbecile who chose to leave the village" – Said Naruto.

After hearing this, the man was taken by surprise. Most hunter-nins he faced always came with the same crap about dealing with the ones that threaten the village's well being. "So you don't care about the village and all that crap you people say?" – Asked Shinji to which Naruto lifted his eyebrow in surprise at the question. "Considering your rank, I wouldn't be concerned about Konoha's well being. An elite chunnin could neutralize you in seconds" – Said Naruto, taunting the man who in turn gritted his teeth after being downsized by his opponent.

"Ok man, you managed to piss me off, now suffer the consequences" – Said the man before starting some hand seals for **Fuuton Kamaitachi no Jutsu **(Wind Style: Cutting Whirlwind Jutsu). Suddenly, Shinji sent waves of cutting winds at Naruto who barely jumped in time to avoid the technique and then look at the man. The bingo book didn't say anything about him being a wind user; however Naruto figured that the man leaned it after seeing Suna's scroll. **"Fire beats wind, Naruto. Channel some of my chakra and deal with this man"** – Said Kyuubi, not even bothering to watch the fight.

_You don't need to tell me that, I was already thinking about it – _Thought Naruto as he focused a bit of the fox's chakra and took his sword in order to charge against the man. Because of the extra-chakra in Naruto's chakra coils, his speed doubled, thus taken Shinji by surprise who in turn took a kunai and was barely able to hold itself against the Furiseirei. However, Shinji was surprised when the hunter's sword was surrounded by fire, thus shattering the kunai into pieces. Taking advantage of the man's surprise, Naruto landed a powerful kick on the man's chest, sending the man flying. While the man was flying, Naruto took the time and started the long series of hand seals needed for **Fuuton Suidou no Tatsumaki **(Wind Style: Tornado Tunnel Jutsu).

Although the attack landed,Shinji, at the last minute, switched places with a nearby rock, thus evading the attack and appearing side by side with the hunter. **Fuuton Kaze no Yaiba (**Wind Style: Wind Sword Jutsu). Not having time to evade and not enough chakra control to do a kawarimi, Naruto made his trademark seal for **Bunshin Danmaku no Jutsu **(Clone Barrage Jutsu). Instantly, four kage bunshins appeared and blocked the attack with their lives, thus protecting the real one. Feeling the need to end the fight right now, Naruto picked his sword and charged against the surprised man who was taken aback after seeing someone use a kinjutsu for defensive purposes, thus cutting the man's head off before the man could even move a muscle.

After the man fell on the ground, Naruto searched his jacket and smiled upon finding Suna's scroll. After putting the man's head inside a scroll, he labeled it for Konoha and summoned Gamakichi who took both scrolls and nodded. Quickly vanishing, the toad went to Gaara's office and delivered him the scroll. The kazekage was surprised to see the toad in his office, but then remembered about Naruto's mission, so he thanked Gamakichi and handed him a scroll to give Naruto.

Once Gamakichi was back, he handed a scroll for Naruto who unrolled it began to read.

_Naruto, thanks for retrieving the scroll. Once again I'm in gratitude towards you for helping the people of Suna. As reward for your trouble, below there is a hint to the next phase of fuuton ninjutsu training. I decided to give this to you, seeing that you could've looked this information at the scroll Shinji stole, but didn't. See you soon my friend._

_**Third step: Kaze Saishuu (Wind gathering)**_

After reading the letter, Naruto smiled and then asked Gamakichi to go to Konoha with the head and the report on Shinji's false status as C ranked missing-nin, simply because of his ability in fuuton ninjutsu.

* * *

(AN: A little message to all of my readers: This will be my last update in 2008. I'll be studying like hell for a test that will happen in January 10th; therefore I won't be able to update more this year. I'll see you all after said date, though. I wish to thank you all who had the chance to read my stories and also wish everyone happy holidays. See you in 2009)


	5. Scratching dog's ears

**Chapter 5 – ****Scratching dog's ears**

Tsunade was getting rid of the usual paperwork. A few moments ago, Gamakichi arrived with Naruto's second victim and his report on the battle. Tsunade was somewhat impressed with Naruto's career as a hunter-nin, considering that inside of Konoha, he wasn't really good in anything except being a stamina and chakra power house. She also called Shizune to rank the missing-nin up to B ranked and sent Gamakichi back with the amount for a B rank capture. Back to assessing Naruto's real capabilities, she thought about it and wondered why the blond was hiding such abilities all this time. Moving on, she and Jiraya had other mission to attend to as well and that was finding the rat that's inside of Konoha, relating information to Akatsuki, however, since no one bothered to know anything about the blond in a while, she figured that the spy wouldn't as well.

* * *

**---With Naruto---**

After receiving the money from Gamakichi, he rested for a while and began to read Gaara's letter and try to figure out what's the last step of fuuton ninjutsu training. The technique called **Fuuton Kaze Saishuu **(Wind Release: Wind Gathering Jutsu) was considered an A ranked jutsu in Suna, not because of its power, for its complexity. Naruto also learned that such technique is vital for a fuuton user to become jounin, simply because only one with significant skill in fuuton element could begin to learn the theory behind the technique. In reality, the concept was simple. The ninja has to focus on the air around you and simply start gathering wind at the top of the shinobi's hand. Although it was a supplementary jutsu, Naruto knew of the usefulness of such technique. For instance, the **Fuuton Daitoppa **(Wind Release: Great Breakthrough Jutsu) would be seriously improved If he manage to gather the wind on its hand and then expel it with force, thus sending the enemy flying.

Of course, the blond wasn't known for taking the easy way out of things, he was sure that this technique, although easy in theory, it would be certainly tough to perform it. "**Of course, imbecile; it isn't a jounin level technique for nothing. As I said before, you'll need to feel the wind before you can learn how to gather it. Also, in order for you to be able to feel the wind, you'll need to learn some meditation exercises. Now, kneel on the ground and I'll teach you how to meditate" **– Said Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded and sat down on the floor. Closing his eyes, he started to focus on his chakra's movement inside his body as per Kyuubi's teachings. Naruto was finding extremely awkward that a demon such as the fox could know meditation exercises such as these and the fox made every possible way to curse the blond for the lack of respect.

However, the blond was far from being patient at the moment, thus not being able to focus. "Man, how much time do I need to stay this way? My legs are falling asleep already" – Mumbled Naruto to which the nine-tailed fox smiled and transformed into his teacher mode. **"Meditation is of course, a tiring procedure, thus patience is the key to performing this exercise. By closing your eyes and focusing merely on the chakra inside of you, eventually you'll be able to see, feel and hear more clearly than before, therefore being able to feel the wind around you. Never matter, though, since the third step of fuuton demands time and time alone. Now, let's proceed with your training. Summon some kage bunshins and practice all the techniques you know. It's important for you to master all of them so that when the time comes, you'll be able to perform the technique flawlessly" – **Ordered Kyuubi to which the blond complied and so the training began.

* * *

**---In Konoha---**

The sun had just appeared in Konoha and the sunlight had just about reached every building's windows by now. Inside the Inuzuka compound, a girl on her 20s had just woken up because of the sunlight when three dogs immediately jumped in bed to greet her. Inuzuka Hana was one of Konoha's chunnin and also a part of the family's vet which happens to treat all animals within Konoha's walls. Hana didn't have much to complain in life. She was a part of the few Inuzukas families alive after the Kyuubi's attack and her mother was the head of the clan and her brother was next in line for the position. As to her personal life, though, she wasn't having much luck. All of her dates didn't get pasted the second dates, simply because of her family's feral personality. Getting up from her bed and after petting her dogs a little bit, she got ready and went downstairs to have some breakfast only to see her stupid brother scratching Akamaru's ears.

"Morning Sis" – Greeted Kiba and Akamaru barked with the same intent. After that, Hana smiled at her little brother and went to the fridge. Kiba to his part remembered that his sister went out with some chunnin that he didn't like and decided to ask her about it. "So, how was your date with the bastard? Don't tell me you're seeing him again" – Snorted Kiba to which Hana slammed the fridge door and focused some killing intent to her little brother. "Not that is any of your business Kiba, but no I'm not seeing him ever again. He really was a bastard. Don't sweat, though, my dogs took care of him, let's just say he won't go near 100 yards from any dog at least for a while" – Said Hana finishing with a devious smirk, making Kiba flinch at such smile. "Geez, I'm glad I'm on your side. Well, I'm off to meet my team. We'll be having our first mission together with Kurenai-sensei once again" – Said Kiba before leaving Hana alone.

After Kiba left, Hana remembered what happened with her friend Kurenai. She loved Asuma more than anything and losing him was a big blow for the genjutsu user. She also remembered Kurenai pretty much blaming Asuma's death on Kiba's friend Naruto just because Akatsuki was responsible for the jounin's death. She knew about the fox being inside of him and although she half her family was killed by the monster, she really didn't have anything against the blond. However, what she heard about the blond really intrigued her a bit and upon hearing that Kurenai was getting back on active duty, she wanted to talk to her friend a little bit.

Quickly going out of the house, she followed Kiba and Akamaru's trail since they would meet the crimson eye kunoichi. While on the way and now accompanied by her three dogs, Hana wondered why Kurenai would be taking missions seeing that she was pregnant with Asuma's child. Also Hana was meaning to ask her about what she said to Naruto and why.

* * *

**---With Team 8---**

Kurenai was located at her team's chosen training ground when all of them meet since the genin team assembly. However, she wasn't alone. Because of her pregnancy, Kurenai was removed from shinobi duty and wouldn't be back until her child was born. That being said, Kakashi was there to fill in her spot as jounin-sensei. Actually, Kurenai was quite taken aback when the silver-haired man volunteered to be the jounin commander of her team and when she asked him about it, he shrugged it off saying that since his team was pretty much disbanded, so he was available for the position.

After a while, one by one of team 8 arrived with Kiba being the last one to arrive. When all of them arrived, they were wondering why Kakashi was here as well when Kurenai initiated the conversation, "Okay team, now that all of you are present, I have some important news. First of all, I'm glad to say that I'm no longer…." – Said Kurenai but was stopped when a familiar acquaintance appeared next to the group. "Kurenai-chan, long time no see, how is everything? Mind if we talk for a while?" – Asked Hana to which Kiba snorted at his sister and Kurenai nodded. "Ok. Kakashi why don't you explain to them while I discuss with Hana-chan here" – Asked Kurenai to which Kakashi nodded and turned to his new team.

Looking at them, Kakashi sighed seeing that while his team was disbanded, this one seemed to have great team abilities and have done well in missions. "Well, team 8, as I'm sure you do or don't know, Kurenai-san is off active duty because of her pregnancy, therefore I'll be filling her shoes as jounin-sensei for Team 8. Everything will be the same as it was with Kurenai, although we will be adding another type of training aside from the already existing ones you three already performs. Any questions?" – Asked Kakashi to which Hinata lifted her hand and turned to ask. "K…Kakashi-sensei, what about Naruto-k…kun and Sakura-san?" – Asked Hinata to which Kakashi sighed once again and explained to the team.

"Due to a shortage in the hospital staff, Sakura was transferred there to help them for a while. As to Naruto, Jiraya-sama is training him in information gathering and also introducing him to Konoha's spy network. Therefore, in case something happens to Jiraya, our spies will have Naruto to give information to" – Said Kakashi to which Hinata nodded, being satisfied with the answer. Next, Kiba lifted his arm and proceeding with his question. "Kakashi-sensei, what can you tell about this other training of yours? And why didn't Kurenai-sensei ever talked to us about it?" – Asked Kiba.

"You three will be learning how to perform elemental ninjutsu. Kurenai-san was about to initiate this training with you guys, but with the death of Asuma, she wasn't able to" – Said Kakashi to which Kiba shouted his enthusiasm and threw his hands up to the air, earning a smile from Kakashi who imagined a certain blond kid doing the same pretty much every time. Kakashi somewhat found team 8 similar to his old team in terms of behavior. Kiba was like Naruto in expressing his enthusiasm, Shino was stoic like Sasuke and Hinata was like Sakura in terms of…..fawning over someone.

* * *

**---With Hana and Kurenai---**

After leaving her team to Kakashi, Kurenai and Hana entered into a wild discussion about her overcoming the death of Asuma and how the crimson eyed kunoichi treated the demon container. Hana was surprised upon hearing straight from the horse's mouth just how Kurenai pretty much blamed everything on Naruto and how Naruto himself acknowledged said guilt. Hana was also surprised by hearing from Kurenai what Naruto said about himself and Kyuubi sharing his physical body and that he took the responsibility for everything that the fox did.

Kurenai wanted to tell Hana about Naruto being a hunter-nin, however seeing that the Inuzuka kunoichi was just a chunnin, she couldn't be privy to a B ranked secret, however that didn't keep Kurenai from telling Hana about how much what the boy said to her and that he was the one responsible for her getting over Asuma's death. According to Kurenai, the way in which Naruto strives to overcome all adversities in life and overcome them was what helped her get over Asuma's death. After a while of talking, Hana said goodbye to Kurenai and she went off to her clinic where she takes care of Konoha's pets.

After seeing the Inuzuka girl leave, Kurenai wondered why Hana was so eager to know about the blond, but shrugged it off assuming that Hana was just plain curious as to what transpired her outburst at Naruto. Returning to her team, she heard Kakashi explaining some aspects of elemental training and how a ninja can find out which element he or she is aligned with. When she arrived next to the group, she apologized for not being able to train them for the time being and said to them that although a bit lazy, Kakashi was an elite jounin, thus being able to pass on some of his knowledge to the team.

* * *

**---With Hana---**

After Hana left the training ground, she charged towards the vet clinic. However, thoughts of the blond kept appearing inside her brain for reasons yet unknown to the girl. She wanted to know more about the boy. Hana only knew of him being the fox container and an acquaintance of her brother. Normally, she would shrug it off, seeing that Naruto was just another one of many she knew in Konoha. However, it was quite obvious that Naruto wasn't just anyone. Aside from jailing the nine-tailed fox, Hana knew that the blond grew up without any one to guide him. That thought alone impressed the girl. She often imagined how her life would be if she didn't have a family to learn stuff or to count on in case of trouble. On top of that, Naruto, although a few steps behind in terms of knowledge and social behavior compared to his peers, managed to grow up nicely and almost made into the position of the chunnin on his first attempt when he beat the rookie of the prior year Hyuuga Neji and was able to stop a kid name Gaara from releasing the one-tailed demon.

Suddenly, a desire to meet the blond appeared. However, according to Kurenai, the blond was out there getting to know Jiraya's spy network and wouldn't come back for a while. Sighing a little bit from not being able to get the enigma out of her mind, she changed the subject for now and she began to think about her schedule and the animals that need care.

* * *

**---In River Country---**

After practicing all of his jutsus, Naruto summoned Gamakichi and invited the toad for a game of shougi and chat for a while. Gamakichi was a little bit surprised but accepted the invitation. While playing, the toad asked Naruto what was wrong to which the blond replied by saying that talking to the fox so much would eventually get into his nerves and that it was nice to hear a third voice even it was only during a game of shougi. The toad knew of Naruto's reasons for becoming a hunter-nin and although he understood, it didn't mean that he was okay with it. Gamakichi was to Naruto like Gamabunta was for Minato and Gamaken is for Jiraya. Gamakichi grew up watching Naruto and eventually came to call him 'bro'. Nowadays, they were now partners in crime performing numbers of pranks together and even fighting together.

Gamakichi was also sad that Naruto wouldn't summon him in the middle of the fight but after Naruto explained him once again the reason why he can't summon the toads, Gamakichi nodded in understanding. Only two people could summon toads and one of them was Jiraya of the Sannin. If Naruto were to summon a toad, his cover would be in serious jeopardy. After a while of talking about how things in Konoha are, Gamakichi made the finishing move, winning once again. "Damn, Gamakichi, I guess I'll never beat you in this game. I don't understand how you're able to counter my every move" – Whined Naruto to which the toad laughed and waved Naruto goodbye saying that his father was calling him.

After the toad was gone, Naruto got up from where he was sitting and started walking back to reach an inn in order to see who is his next target when a messenger hawk suddenly landed on his arm. Immediately after handing the note to the blond, the bird went up and back to where he came from. Unrolling the little scroll, Naruto saw it was a letter from the hunter-nin chief.

_Recruit, _

_How is the hunting going? I've already received the head of Jishin. Nice work by the way. This bastard caused a bit of a commotion in Suna as well, huh? Well he got what he deserved. Now, I have an assignment for you as I said I would do on occasion. Head to a night house called Red Dragon. Inside, you'll ask for a woman codenamed Kira. She is an officer of mine and the one responsible for reporting the mental health of our hunters. Head there and talk to her for a bit. Personally, I consider this irrelevant, but it was the hokage who issued such rule so I guess we have to follow. The place's location is on the map below. Reach there as quickly as possible so that she can send your report to me. _

_Best Regards,_

_Hunter-nin Leader_

After reading it, the blond put the scroll inside his left jacket pocket and continued to walk towards the place where the leader instructed. **"I wonder what this Kira looks like, huh Naruto. It's been quite a while since you last had some fun, he he he" – **Laughed Kyuubi to which Naruto sighed since once again the fox was behaving like the pervert he was. _"There you go, being all perverted like that. But still I wonder if this examination was issued because of me or it already existed before. The leader didn't approve of such practice, so maybe Tsunade wants to keep tabs with me by assessing my mental stability" __**– **_Thought Naruto, earning a nod from Kyuubi inside the mindscape. **"Now that you mentioned, it does seems strange, nonetheless there is also a reason for you to meet this Kira inside a brothel. She must be a hooker in disguise or work there as bartender or something like that. Personally, I believe it's the first one, he he"** – Snickered Kyuubi making Naruto slap himself in the forehead for even bothering to listen to his perverted companion.

* * *

**---At the brothel---**

Travelling fast, Naruto managed to arrive at the place before midnight and entered inside. Once in the place, Naruto studied his surroundings for a little bit, since he never stepped foot on a brothel before. For three years, he denied Jiraya's invitations saying that he wanted to train and not focus on becoming a pervert. But now here he was. Although a little darker than the bar, Naruto assumed that it wasn't much different. Approaching the bar, he ordered some sake and began to scout the place for a woman named Kira. Naruto cursed his leader for not describing the girl, leaving him to go ask around. Also, he knew the woman wouldn't be able to recognize him since he wouldn't enter with the hunter-nin mask simply because he would be drawing unwanted attention.

Little did the blond know that said woman was seizing him up from head to toe from across the place. Codenamed Kira was a hunter-nin specialized on gathering information on missing-nins and passing on to her peers so that they could hunt them. Kira wasn't much of a fighter, though she earned the position of hunter-nin from her outstanding tracking and information gathering skills. Kira was about 25 years old, red hair and perfect physique. Upon seeing a person enters that matched the description of her next assignment she smiled upon seeing the man suspiciously studied his surroundings like he was entering an enemy hideout. She knew that said person was using an advanced henge from barely usage of chakra; however she had to maintain her disguise as well as his next assignment.

Walking casually to the bar, she gently landed her hand on Naruto's shoulder, making the blond disguised as brunette turn around to meet the girl. However, Naruto soon realized his mistake upon looking at said woman's physique and soon he was bombarded with naughty images courtesy of the fox. Kira found it strange that this character in front of her suddenly stiffened just by looking at her, but seeing that every man that came across her did the same thing so she proceeded with the mission. "Greetings Shi (death), I'm Kira. As you know, leader sent you here for me to evaluate your mental condition, so follow me to one of the rooms and we'll begin as soon as possible" – Said Kira before turning and head for one of the rooms. Naruto followed her while mentally berating the damn fox from interfering with his mission.

Upon entering in one of the rooms, Kira seat on the bed while waiting for the man who was now walking casually inside the room. After Naruto entered the room, he closed the door and released the henge, revealing his blonde hair, blue eyes and of course his whisker marks, stunning the woman a bit. Kira often complained about having to take care of some scary faces during her time as hunter-nin, but now that Naruto appeared, she was quite taken aback and wondered what possessed such a man to choose the solitude of the hunter-nin position. "Kira, before beginning your analysis, how long have you been doing this mission?" – Asked Naruto to which Kira responded, albeit still stunned by the blond's looks. "I'll be completing eight years next week. I was a medic-nin in Konoha, but I always wanted to go outside the village so they offered me this job to attend hunter-nins. Now, we'll begin with your checkup. If you please just take off your shirt so that I can run a couple of diagnostics" – Said Kira, though somehow the thought of seeing this guy's body was tempting.

The woman was by no means perverted; nonetheless she had needs just like anyone else. Naruto for his part, did as he was told and took his shirt off and stood standing while the girl ran her green glowing hands through his body in order to assess his physical health, but also assess his physical assets as well, while hoping that said blond wouldn't mind. After a while, she was satisfied with the checkup exam and returned to the bed to write something in a scroll. "You are perfectly healthy for now Uzumaki Naruto. Now, I'll be asking some questions and be analyzing your answer to see if you have what it takes to be a hunter-nin, okay" – Asked Kira to which Naruto nodded.

"Okay, first of three. Why do you become a hunter-nin? Mind that you have to answer the truth at all times. I can see when a person is lying" – Asked Kira to which Naruto sighed seeing that his answer could cause two reactions out of the girl. One, she suddenly charges with a kunai and kill him or two just do nothing and proceed with the questions. "Due to a jounin called Sarutobi Asuma's passing away because of me, I knew that Akatsuki would be after what I keep inside of me, so I became a hunter-nin in order to protect the village. As to what's inside of me, I believe you can figure out" – Said Naruto before waiting for realization to appear and punch Kira with more force than a ton of bricks. Kira was shocked to say the least, seeing that the being responsible for her becoming a medic-nin was there in front of her. The woman was 12 when the Kyuubi no Yoko attacked Konoha and was one of the people who helped attend the ones who survived the battle. However, Kira was an orphan at the time, so she didn't have any of her parents killed by said fox.

Naruto for his part wondered if the woman would try to kill him seeing that she was in a lot of thoughts. Sighing, he grabbed his shirt and was about to leave when Kira awoke from her dreams and reached out for the blond not to leave. "Wait Naruto, I'm sorry I was trapped in a lot of thinking. Don't worry about me judging you or anything, I just didn't realize you of all people chose such a lonely position" – Asked Kira, now quickly forgetting about her mission and wanting to know the blonde a little better. Naruto for his part smiled and closed the door. Turning to meet the woman, Naruto began explaining his reasons for leaving and what happened after that. Kira, while listening, was surprised to hear that Kurenai of all people would call him by such names. Although Kira doesn't know Kurenai that much, she knew about her personality and wondered how much the death of this Asuma must have changed the woman's thinking.

As Naruto was talking about pretty much his entire life, Kira couldn't help but wonder why the blond was stoic about. All his life, Naruto didn't have anyone to look after him and yet he didn't even show any sign of being angry or sad about it. One thing was for sure, though, if his life wasn't enough to snap the guy's mind, Kira was sure nothing would. After Naruto stopped the story, Kira thought about asking some more questions but considered against it. There wasn't any need for it, though. "I suppose you're Okay. Your physical exam showed no illness whatsoever and according to what you told me, there isn't a need for psychological exam" – Said Kira to which Naruto shrugged it off and turned to leave towards finding a room to stay for the night when Kira once again called him.

When Naruto turned, though, his eyes widened for a second upon seeing the woman losing the only piece of clothing that kept her from full nudity. "I know for a fact that you are looking for a place to sleep. You can stay with me with you want to" - Whispered Kira, while gently caressing her body in a sexual manner. "I happen to be quite lonely at times, you know" – Whispered Kira once again, while walking towards Naruto while swinging her hips, thus seducing the blond. **"Man, I didn't even need to set out the mood. This girl is something else"** – Said Kyuubi giggling like a school girl. Naruto for his part was having difficulty holding his urge to just jump on the girl. However, staying quiet wasn't going to improve his situation. "W...well, I guess I could take on your offer" – Mumbled Naruto as Kira stopped just inches from his face while using her hands to lift his shirt and take it off and then smash Naruto's lips with her own.

Not wasting any time, Kira dragged Naruto towards the bed while on a kissing frenzy, getting ready for the love making. After landing on the bed, Naruto proceeded to gently massage Kira's body with his hands while listening to the woman's moaning as a result. Kissing the woman again, Naruto started taking off the rest of his clothes, thus being naked just like Kira. "Your body is so warm, Naruto. Would you mind staying on top of me while we're making out" – Asked Kira to which Naruto smiled and took over the control of the situation by kissing the girl while using his hands for caressing Kira's soft breasts. After a while, Naruto moved from the lips to the woman's neck, earning some deep moaning in anticipation by the red head girl. "Yes…Naruto, this is so good, you just keep it up" – Moaned Kira while Naruto was blowing her neck with enthusiasm.

Being inside a brothel for so long, one could learn several things and one is getting to know about what man wants in sex. Kira suddenly flipped Naruto off and landed on top of him before starting to lick his body a while. Going downstairs, Kira smiled upon seeing that Naruto was already in ecstasy. Grabbing Naruto's cock, Kira began sucking it with intensity, making Naruto send his head backwards from pure bliss. "Oh my god, this is nice. You're pretty good at this" – Said Naruto to which Kira smirked and turned to ask. "You like this a lot, don't you. Why don't I intensify it so that you can appreciate your evening even more with me" – Asked Kira, earning a nod from the blond before moaning from the blowjob. If Naruto was focusing on holding his ground against the girl, he was screwed when Kira grabbed his cock and simply put in her pussy before beginning the movement up and down.

After that, Naruto was out of breath. He couldn't hold on anymore and was going to blow up inside of her until he sensed some chakra usage in there and suddenly he was all relaxed. "Don't worry Naruto; you won't cum until I say so. Now…seeing that that's out of the way, how about we continue" – Asked Kira to which Naruto smiled and just started pounding Kira hard. As the blond was pounding Kira from the back, Kira loved each moment of the love making. Pulling the girl's hair and hearing the girl moan like crazy while sticking it in hard, Naruto was loving not having to worry about ever Cumming and perhaps doing it until he felt his body go numb. Kira, however, didn't have such level of control over her hormones and Naruto's dick wasn't helping her at least one bit. Although the blond would have an orgasm already, Kira wasn't counting on this being so damn good and the strong and unpredictable movement was driving her crazy. "Oh my…my god, keep it up…yes like this, oh my god, Naruto" – Screamed Kira in orgasm before seeing the blond also begin to lose his cool because of Kira's control over him stop.

Seeing that the blond was almost on the verge of blowing up, he took his cock off and ejaculated all over her body much to the redhead's appreciation. Afterwards, the blond and the redhead dressed up and Kira took Naruto to her temporary apartment that she had a couple of miles from the brothel in order to sleep. Upon arrival, Naruto saw that there was only one bed and no couch, but before he would get to say that he could simply sleep on the floor, Kira pushed him to the bed and once again stripped her clothes. "Don't you think you'll leave without we having another go, do you? I want to feel you inside of me again Naruto" – Said Kira before approaching the bed and seeing Naruto smile at her.

* * *

**---The next day---**

When the sun appeared, Naruto tried to get up but found that something was holding him down. Upon looking, he smiled upon realizing that Kira ended up falling asleep on top of his chest which at first took the blond by surprise since he wouldn't take Kira for a romantic person. Shaking said kunoichi, Kira mumbled some words about hating sunlight and hating whoever was waking her up, making Naruto smile at the girl's antics. "Wake up Kira-san" – Said Naruto to which the girl looked at him and immediately jumped off the bed before remembering about what happened yesterday and blushed profusely at how much times they had sex with each other before exhaustion appeared. "Sorry Naruto, it's just that I'm not used to sleeping with a man after having sex. I'll be preparing breakfast, bathroom is first door on the left" – Said Kira before getting up from the ground and walked to the kitchen naked.

While Kira was preparing breakfast, Naruto went to go fresh up a little bit and then came out with his hunter-nin outfit, stunning the girl once again. "Cool outfit Naruto" – Said Kira, avoiding the usage of another word that would eventually lead up to a series of acts, thus eventually getting addictive. The redhead woman was focusing hard not to think about how good was the blond in bed, simply because she couldn't get attached right now. Her long-term mission would end in a year and a half and then she could return to Konoha and become a medic-nin. Kira didn't remember much about the village apart from her hunter-nin peers told her about and frankly she missed there a lot. Naruto, wondering why Kira was suddenly saddened, asked her what the problem is. "I just miss Konoha, that's all. I've been on this mission for eight years now and I don't even remember much of the village anymore. I just wish my mission would end soon so I could return and ask to be transferred as a medic-nin. I heard about the new Hokage applying a new medic training and I wished to learn a lot from Tsunade-sama. Won't be happening so soon, though; I'm on this mission for more two years" – Said Kira before a tear started falling from her face.

Naruto, after seeing this, pretty much moved unconsciously and just hugged the sobbing girl. "Do you have any one who's waiting for you in Konoha?" – Asked Naruto while looking at Kira with his penetrating blue eyes, making the girl suddenly imagine someone else hugging her, but she couldn't put her mind to know who the person was, but it was quite similar to Naruto. As to the answer, she nodded in negative. "Only a cousin of mine; but I don't think she knows I even exist. We didn't get to see each other for fifteen years now. I heard from some of our peers that she is a Tokubetsu jounin now and it's working side by side with Morino Ibiki, head of interrogation and torture division" – Said Kira, making Naruto's eyes go wide in realization. "Anko? Mitarashi Anko is your cousin?" – Asked Naruto still shocked by hearing that he pretty much banged the entire Mitarashi clan and didn't even knew it. Kira for her part was stunned that Naruto said her cousin's name. "Do you know about her Naruto? Tell me a little bit about her" – Asked Kira to which Naruto smiled and ushered the woman to seat for a while.

"When can I start? Well I first met Anko in my chunnin exams. She was the proctor of the second phase. At the time, I was scared of her shitless based on her behavior. However, back then I didn't have the maturity to see that her tough behavior was just a mask to deal with her loneliness. Orochimaru marked her deep and now she's scared of others getting too close to her. She saw that I was doing the same thing because of what I carry and we now became friends. Also, I don't know how to tell you this, seeing that you're her cousin, but me and her had a little "one night stand" as well" – Said Naruto to which Kira smiled deviously. Finally seeing the resemblance between both girls, Naruto continued to explain. "Also, she is quite sadistic and has quite the taste for blood" – Finished Naruto, earning a smile from Kira who heard that same thing from her peer, although the man was more scared and Naruto was smiling while telling it which meant that he was okay with it.

"Do you like her Naruto? You know more than a friend" – Asked Kira after wondering how well Naruto just described the girl to which Naruto smiled and responded. "Anko is a wonderful person and shares a similar burden to my own. Although we're connected through bad experiences, we talked about it and realized that the sex was only physical attraction and that's about it. Anko isn't the type of person who can get tied down and I'm just not in the position of being attached to anyone at the moment. I'm a hunter-nin right now and always will be on the run. You, however, don't have to do this anymore" – Said Naruto smiling at the girl who in turn was stunned at what the man in front of her just said. "What do you mean Naruto?"

"I'm saying that Tsunade-sama is always after reliable medic-nins to help in the hospital. I could ask her a favor and end your long-term mission. What do you say?" –Asked the blond to which the redhead was stunned, but happily smiled at the blond. "Do you think she could help me?" – Asked Kira with hope to which Naruto nodded. "Of course she will, I was just going to write to her about my next target. It's a C ranked missing-nin called Inuzuka Takashi. The man was expelled from the Inuzuka clan from almost killing one of the dogs and left the village with two of the Clan's most treasured dogs. Thus, in the bingo book, says that an Inuzuka would have to be present to take the dogs back to Konoha. I can also ask for your return" – Said Naruto to which the girl smiled and because of the sunlight reflecting inside, Kira's smile became angelical and Naruto was a little bit hypnotized by it. "You know Kira, you have a very beautiful smile" – Said Naruto making the girl blush for maybe the first time in years.

Smiling back, Naruto wrote a message to Tsunade in a scroll and summoned Gamakichi to take it to the her.

* * *

**---In Tsunade's office---**

The blond hokage was reading a medical report when the toad appeared and greeted Tsunade. "What's it now Gamakichi, another head?" – Asked Tsunade, making Gamakichi look at the woman wondering what was that all about. Truth be told, Tsunade was afraid for Naruto and him brining only heads for her in exchange for the reward. "**Geez lady, what's wrong with you? No, it isn't a head this time, it's only a message from the bro to you"** – Said Gamakichi before handling the scroll to the woman who yanked it from the toad and started reading.

_Dear Tsunade-sama, _

_Somehow, I got the feeling that you're mad at me for only sending you heads and not even tell you how I'm doing. I'm sorry for that, I guess I got carried away or whatever. It's been quite some time since I left and I miss all of you guys a lot. __Being a hunter-nin is good, although it's hard to get some company. I sometimes summon Gamakichi for a game of shougi and even try to withstand the damn fox's perverted ramblings for a while. I hope you're all doing okay and hope that someday I can see all of you guys again. With Akatsuki on the loose, I don't feel like suddenly appearing in Konoha and attract them yet again. _

_Now I also wanted to discuss two things with you if I may. First of all, I kind of meet a hunter-nin codenamed Kira whose mission is to diagnose other hunter-nins and see how well they are doing. Kira is very talented in medical ninjutsu and seriously wanted to come back to Konoha in order to become a medic-nin. Sadly, though, her mission will take another two years to complete and she misses the village a lot, couldn't you perhaps end her mission, so that she can fulfill her dream, as a favor to me. Also, as I analyzed my next target, a man called Inuzuka Takashi, the bingo book states that an Inuzuka must be present to collect some dogs that said man stole from the clan. Please contact any Inuzuka that is available and let him or her know that I'll be meeting said person on the coordinates listed below. _

_Best Regards_

_Shi_

After Tsunade finished reading it, she smiled at the thought of still seeing hope that Naruto would return from the hunter-nin program and not become like Uzuki. Also, she was wondering what happened between the blond and this girl for him to help her this much. She would surely do what he asked, but she was curious as to what happened. "Gamakichi, send this reply to him, thank you" – Said Tsunade to which Gamakichi nodded and then disappeared. After, Tsunade screamed for Shizune to fetch for Inuzuka Hana, since Kiba was out on a mission with Kakashi.

After a while, said girl appeared on Tsunade's office accompanied by her dogs. "You wanted to talk to me Hokage-sama?" – Asked Hana to which Tsunade nodded and ushered to sit down for a while. "Hana, what can you tell me of a man called Inuzuka Takashi?" – Asked Tsunade, stunning the chunnin who for her part hasn't heard of this name for a while. "According to my mom, Takashi was expelled from the clan for almost killing one of our dogs. He, then, left the village but not before taking with him, two of the clan's most precious pups. These pups are the direct descendant of mother's dog Kudomaru, why do you ask Hokage-sama?" – Asked Hana to which Tsunade smiled. "One of Konoha's hunter-nins is after said man and if I recall it correctly, your family made it obligatory that an Inuzuka must be present in order to take the dogs back here. Therefore, I'm sending you on this B ranked mission, Hana. The hunter-nin will be waiting for your arrival in this coordinates right here. Contact him and help him in tracking Takashi. Don't worry about dealing with Takashi, though, the hunter-nin will be in charge of the assault, you just have to worry about the man's dogs in case he chooses to use them." – Said Tsunade to which Hana nodded and left to head for the Inuzuka compound.

* * *

­**---At the Inuzuka compound---**

A couple minutes later, Hana arrived and saw her mother reading today's newspaper with Kudomaru lying on the floor. "Good morning mother, we must talk" – Shouted Hana, sounding quite serious to which Tsume landed the newspaper on the table and turned to listen to her daughter. "Kaa-san, Tsunade-sama called me and said that a hunter-nin is going to hunt Takashi-san" – Said Hana, earning growling from both Tsume and Kudomaru. "Finally, that man should pay for stealing Kuromaru-kun's pups. I assume Tsunade-sama sent you to retrieve the pups?" – Asked Tsume to which Hana nodded. "I'll be leaving in two hours towards the rendezvous point with the hunter-nin." – Said Hana to which Tsume nodded. "Be careful Hana-chan, Takashi could have trained Kudomaru's pups and could be seriously dangerous to the huskies and you as well. The hunter-nin is any good?" – Asked Tsume, earning a nod from Hana. "According to Tsunade-sama, the hunter-nin is capable of dealing with him"

"Okay but still be careful" – Said Tsume.

* * *

**---With Naruto---**

Already walking towards his destination to where he would meet with an Inuzuka, he was stopped when Kira hugged him once again from helping her. "If you meet Anko, tell her that I'm doing okay and I'll be sending a message soon" – Said Naruto to which Kira nodded and went back to pack her stuff before wishing Naruto good luck on his hunting. Back to Naruto, the coordinates that he sent Tsunade was not very far from where he was right now and he only needed a thirty minute walking. Unfortunately, one fox couldn't avoid and began rambling. **"That Kira person is really something else, no wonder she's related to that Anko person"** – Said Kyuubi to which Naruto sighed since once again. "_Indeed, she and Anko have similarities, though both of them somehow have the same genuine smile once the mask falls. I wonder, though, about the Mitarashi Clan since neither Anko nor Kira told me about others that were alive." – _Thought Naruto to which Kyuubi chose to respond. **"A lot of them went up against me, though few escaped I guess. The Mitarashi clan is famous for assassination techniques, so it was safe to say that they weren't a match for me, except for a damn blond that managed to trap me inside another damn blond"** – Muttered Kyuubi to which Naruto laughed out loud.

"Would you let go of the Yondaime already. That was sixteen years ago, man if I dwelled so much with the past, I'd be dead right now" – Shouted Naruto out loud since no one was near, but Kyuubi wasn't so thrilled to hear this. **"Damn imbecile, sixteen years for you is sixteen days for me. But I guess you filthy human is right; dwelling on the past like this is worthless. I have to say, though, no matter how much time I was out there and how much humans I met, you are definitely the strangest one of them all"** – Said kyuubi stunning Naruto a little bit. _"Wow, I never even imagined you actually saying I'm right. It seems the apocalypse is on the way then." _– Thought Naruto, earning a snort from Kyuubi who then muttered words like wanting to kill a certain blond. However, the fox changed the subject. "**You're almost reaching the spot and it will take at least two or three hours for someone to arrive here. When you arrive, you'll once again meditate in order to feel the wind around you**" – Ordered Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded and continued walking.

* * *

**---With Hana---**

Stopping for a moment to drink some water, Hana smiled upon seeing her three dogs walking towards a small lake in order to drink some water as well. She remembered the first time she got all of them and how happy she was at the time.

**Flashback on**

_A six year old Hana was trying to get on Ku__romaru's back but failing miserably before falling on the ground and cried from the impact. After that, the big and scarred dog started licking her face and suddenly all sad moments were gone. Hana was giggling at the feeling of Kuromaru's tongue licking her. Right behind her, were Tsume and Hana's father watching as the little girl's laughter filled their heart with pride and joy. Tsume was smiling even more when she went inside the compound and brought a basket with three husky pups that was recently born. _

"_Hana-chan, I and your father think that you're ready for your own" – Said Tsume before seeing the little girl's neck almost break when she turned to see what was inside the basket. After Tsume dropped it on the floor, the three huskies immediately jumped towards Hana and started licking her, giving her the tinkles. "Hahaha, stop it. It tinkles…hahaha" – Shouted Hana, before giving up and just lied down on the ground with the huskies petting her. "Hana, these three are called the Haimaru siblings. These three will be your companions in life and in battle once you become a genin. Until then, we'll be teaching you our family's fighting style and exclusive jutsus. You are to treat them as you'd treat your equal. Normally, a fresh Inuzuka would take only one dog first and then have addictions when growing up, however since these three pups here are triplets, we decided to put them together, so your responsibility will be for all three of them. _

"_Don't worry mom, I'll take care of them, hahahah stop it…not again" – Said Hana after being assaulted from her three pups_

**Flashback off**

Getting up from where she was sitting, Hana called the triplets for a little snack before continuing the trip. After that was taken care of, four blurs were the only thing visible since Hana and the triplets all travelled by using a variation of the shunshin no jutsu that high level Inuzuka shinobis are able to do. The technique involves teleporting further and then using her legs together with chakra to give the extra speed. Looking at the sun for how much time she had, she concluded that a little less than 10 minutes is needed to arrive.

* * *

**---With Naruto---**

Closing his eyes, he started to focus in feeling the wind around him, however once again the blond just couldn't get it. He was getting desperate simply because he couldn't see or feel the wind. **"That's where you don't get it imbecile. You can't just wait like you'd be waiting to see someone. In order for you to be able to feel a force of nature, you'll need to become one with the nature. Instead of focusing only on waiting for it to happen, just focus on breeding the air around you, focus on hearing the wind, focus on hearing the water's sound" – **Taught Kyuubi to which Naruto breathed deeply and tried to do what Kyuubi advised. Focusing chakra on his ears and nose, Naruto was suddenly surrounded by different noises and smells that seemed to calm him a lot. The way in which the wind travels around all corporeal beings, the sound the water makes when travels towards the sea, the varied smells of different plants and flowers.

Suddenly, a thin lair of transparent air passed to his left and then one passed from his right. "**That's it Naruto. Keep it up" **– Said Kyuubi with a certain kind of pride of being able to seeing someone master the wind element. It wasn't long until Naruto could see and feel the wind around him. Opening his eyes, he smiled upon finally be able to perform the **Fuuton Kaze Saishuu **(Wind Release: Wind Gathering Jutsu). Getting up he was about to take off his mask for a second when he heard four footsteps coming his way. Resting his hands on his sword, he awaited for the arrival of what could possibly be common thugs or Akatsuki. However, when he saw a paw appear next to a little foliage, he knew that it was one of the Inuzuka dogs. Silently thanking Kami for not seeing Akamaru's white fur, Naruto was also wondering about who would be sent when he saw Hana appear.

Naruto was stunned. Using tight shorts and the chunnin jacket like that could send any man on fire right now. **"And fox…"** – Said Kyuubi, earning a inside nod from Naruto. "Greetings Hunter-nin, the Hokage sent me to aid you in hunting Inuzuka Takashi. My name is Inuzuka Hana" – Said Hana, earning a nod from Naruto who also greeted her. _Great, Kiba's sister _- thought Naruto as he greeted the girl as well. "It's nice to meet you Hana-san and I guess that these three are your companion" – Said Naruto, scratching one of the dog's ears much to said dog's delight and Hana's surprise.

It wasn't often that others treated the Inuzuka dogs like this and it was even rarer for her triplets to simply not growl at a stranger, even though the man is on Konoha's side. Also, something about the man's wearing somewhat unnerved Hana. Being an Inuzuka, she was keen on her feral behavior, of course having a thing for tough shinobi. The black clothes, the hunter-nin mask and the katana strapped on his back; Hana was silently clapping the choice of clothes. "Hana, what can you tell me about Takashi? I need to know all he can do so that when the time comes, we'll know how to handle the man" – Asked Naruto to which the girl nodded and proceeded. "Takashi was a chunnin when he left. I'd say that he mastered all of our clan's jutsu and knows our fighting style. Now as to his dogs, though, there is where it will be difficult. Kuromaru is our clan's strongest dog and Takashi stole Kuromaru's dogs" – Said Hana to which Naruto nodded. "I've already know about the Inuzuka's fighting style and its jutsus, if those are Takashi's only abilities, then he won't be much trouble. Now, I assume your dogs can sense Kuromaru's scent so finding the dogs, we can find Takashi" – Said Naruto before turning and look at the bingo book for one final analysis.

Hana was considered a proud member of the Inuzuka clan and seeing this hunter-nin saying that the Inuzuka abilities aren't to be concerned with, she felt a little bit taken aback. "Sorry about interrupting your thought there but why do you say fighting an Inuzuka isn't much trouble?" – Asked Hana to which Naruto smirked upon seeing that just like Kiba, Hana was also a fiery person. "I've already go to fight an Inuzuka before and I can tell that your style focus on excess speed and not much power. The only reason sometimes the attack hits it's because of the speed that follows it, not the strength. Also, without the dogs the Inuzuka's fighting style is not as effective as it would be with the companion. Also, upon losing the companion, the shinobi becomes unfocused and unprepared to deal with the opponent" - Explained Naruto, leaving Hana without anything to reply. Truth be told, fighting with dogs are both a blessing and a curse. With them, an Inuzuka is deadly, without them the Inuzuka loses everything.

"Now, would you Hana be so helpful and try to find our guy" – Said Naruto to which Hana snorted and brought her huskies together to find Takashi. After a while, the triplets found the trail and charged towards the destination. Hana and Naruto charged next and the team travelled for a while. While travelling, Hana was watching the hunter up close. The inuzukas were famous from being able to judge characters by getting said person's scent. Hana was able to identify the smell of a fox coming from the hunter. However, her dogs trusted him, simply because no one of them growled or even barked at him. Nonetheless, Hana was furious at the man for diminishing the Inuzuka's abilities.

When the team landed, they stopped in front of a house made of wood in the middle of the forest. The smell of dogs nearby was clear even to Naruto which showed that Takashi was indeed inside the house. Suddenly, three drills destroyed the house and charged against Naruto, Hana and the triplets, obliging all of them to scatter as to avoid the incoming attack. "Hana-chan, is that really you? My goodness, you've grown so much since the last time I saw you. And I see you brought a hunter-nin with you" – Said Takashi, earning some growling from the girl. Takashi was wearing the regular chunnin attire with a scratch on his forehead protector. Takashi was what could be considered as grownup Kiba with his red markings and wild black hair but with white shades from the age. Naruto for his part found that he had just entered in a family relationship. "You know, I don't mean to get into this sort of family gathering, so I'll just give you two a minute" – Said Naruto walking away from the two, stunning both Hana and Takashi; Hana from thinking that the man would leave her behind and Takashi for wondering why a hunter-nin would abandon its prey.

Naruto just sat on the rock waiting for the little family reunion to stop. "Well the hunter-nin is right. It's been ages since I've seen my niece, how have you been?" – Asked Takashi before dodging a tsuuga of one of Hana's dogs. "Well, I guess that the fighting now started, so I guess I can get back in" – Said Naruto earning a snarl from Hana who didn't know who she wanted to kill more. "Why the hell did you walk away from us? What was the matter with you?" – Shouted Hana, now clearly filled with her so called feral hormones. Naruto for his part just shrugged it off. "Well, I didn't want to get involved in the clan's manner, the only thing that manners to me is the guy's head" – Said Naruto before turning to Takashi.

Takashi soon got fed up with the whole story and bended on all fours, showing Naruto the clan's signature jutsu. Seeing this, Naruto got ready and prepared for the battle, signaling for Hana to get out of the way. Not even wanting to help the hunter-nin, Hana stepped aside and focused on the dogs that by now were as big as Kuromaru. Suddenly, Takashi jumped in the air and accompanied by his two dogs, started spinning with the Gatsuuga attack towards Naruto. Not even bothering to block, make a jutsu to defend, Naruto just jumped out of the way with chakra and proceeded with the hand signs. **Fuuton Kaze no Yaiba **(Wind Release: Wind Sword Jutsu). Right after landing, Takashi's reflexes were the only thing that saved him from losing his neck, thus the attack hitting him on the chest, instead. Getting up once again with blood dropping from the wound, Takashi snarled at the hunter-nin from using elemental ninjutsu against him. "I wouldn't take you for coward, but I guess you're just like everyone. Come fight me in close ranged, coward" – Shouted Takashi to which Naruto smirked, seeing the obvious attempt of challenge.

"Yu don't seem too smart if you're actually thinking that I will fight against you and your dogs from close range. That would be plain suicidal. Not to mention that those dogs are the Inuzuka clan's pride so they must be brutal. However, I know of a way of evening the numbers a bit. **Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu **(Mass Shadow Clone Jutsu). Instantly, fifty Narutos appeared and all said in unison. "So what do you say, three against 50. Now do you want to fight close range?" – Asked Naruto, earning a growl from Takashi who by now was completely controlled by his anger. Hana, while watching, was impressed with the hunter-nin's ability and chakra capacity. Summoning this much replications was a feat only one person in Konoha could attempt and that was Kiba's friend Naruto. Looking at the fight once again, she saw Takashi once again attacking the Naruto clones with Gatsuuga, taking one by one very quickly. Just as Takashi was about to attack the last one, he stopped when the clone suddenly exploded inches from the man, sending him and the dogs flying.

Hitting the head, one of the dogs lost conscious and Takashi was seriously hurt and with one dog down. "What's the matter Takashi? Lost one of your dogs and you already becomes vulnerable. Whatever happened to all the confidence from before?" – Asked Naruto messing up with the man's head in order to get the man to do something foolish from rage. Just as Kiba, Takashi was having trouble controlling himself. This hunter-nin was different from the others who came after him, this one was cautious, he was aware of the Inuzuka fighting style and he has plenty of chakra to use. Suddenly, he saw the hunter-nin making some hand signs and exhaling five air bullets against him and the remaining dog. Not having the agility necessary to dodge, Takashi was hit by all five of them and once again was sent flying. The dog, however, wasn't hit and it went to check his brother to see if it was alright.

Hana, after seeing this, quickly went to the place where the dogs were and left the battle to Naruto and Takashi. Getting up almost barely, Takashi looked at Naruto with fire in his eyes. Seeing that he now lost his dogs, he charged Naruto head on with a single Tsuuga to which Naruto started a quick series of hand seals. **Fuuton Suidou no Tatsumaki **(Wind Release: Tornado Tunnel Jutsu). The attacks meat head on and Takashi was once again sent to the tree hitting his head with force, knocking him down. After that, Naruto quickly went to where Hana was treating the first dog. "Is he okay?" – asked Naruto to which at first Hana was surprised for the sudden consideration, but then nodded and appreciated the gesture. "He is fine, just unconscious. Thanks for not focusing the attacks on the dogs. I was afraid you do something like that and end up hurting them" – Said Hana with a smile.

"I wouldn't ever do that. A friend of mine has one and I care deeply for that big white fur. Now, I'll take care of Takashi, hold down a moment and don't look if you don't have the stomach for it" – Said Naruto before turning and heading to Takashi who was still unconscious. Taking his sword, Naruto cut off the man's head by performing a quick attack with his sword. Hana wasn't watching since she was taking care of Kuromaru's dogs. Slowly focusing on Kyuubi's chakra, Naruto set the man's body to burn, leaving no evidences of his presence to others. Quickly sealing the man's head inside a scroll, Naruto returned to Hana and the triplets who were patching one of the dog's paws since it was broke. "Everything is set to go? You will have to take them to Konoha yourself" – Asked Naruto to which Hana nodded. "Only one of them is injured, I'll help the other on the travel. I'm curious to one thing, though. You said about your friend has a white dog. Is your friend an Inuzuka as well?" – Asked Hana, getting Naruto by surprise seeing that this lady just got him into a corner. **"Yes, she got you alright. Now let's see how you get yourself out of this"**- Said Kyuubi inside his mind.

"Yes, he is an Inuzuka. I can't tell you much from fear of my identity being revealed. If you want to know more about me, talk to either the Hokage or Jiraya-sama. They'll talk to you about me. Now here is we go on our separate ways. Have a safe journey back to the village" – Said Naruto before walking once again to one of the triplets and scratched its ears once again before vanishing via shunshin and leaving Hana alone with the dogs. _Wait, I didn't realize the guy has blonde hair. I don't know many in Konoha who are blond, except for the Godaime, the Yondaime and….oh shit…he was talking about Akamaru and Kiba…Damn it, I missed my chance to talk to him. Ok, I will talk to them Naruto and we'll be meeting once again, that's for sure. _


	6. Hunter's Fear

**Chapter 6 – Hunter's fear**

After Naruto left Hana to return to the village, Naruto found a little hotel to stay. Looking at the bingo book, he was surprised to see that the last one on the list was the last C level missing-nin on the book. So far, he didn't consider as much of a challenge being a hunter-nin, however he knew that missing-nins weren't given ranks by abilities alone. As he turned to look at the B ranked ones, he acknowledged that they are indeed much more cunning than the c ranked level ones. Naruto was stunned that the B ranked ones are composed of ex-jounins and wondered if he had the ability to deal with a person of this level. "**You'll need to train more indeed if you want to be on equal terms with people of this level. Tomorrow, we'll be increasing your pace, as well as train more ninjutsu. For the B ranked missing-nins, you'll need katon ninjutsu aside from fuuton. I'll teach you one high level katon ninjutsu and we'll also improve your Fuuton Rasenshuriken **(Wind Release: Spiral Shuriken Jutsu). **Now with improvement regarding wind manipulation, we could finally complete that jutsu"** – Said the Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded.

After learning **Fuuton Kaze Saishuu **(Wind Release: Wind Gathering Jutsu), Naruto was wondering whether or not he could finish the Rasenshuriken, simply because he was now a master at wind manipulation. The only question now was how. No matter how much Naruto changed the Yondaime's original technique, every rasengan based technique was limited to close-ranged attack and Naruto wasn't entirely comfortable with that anymore. Charging the technique and then attacking the enemy ends up giving a tunnel vision to the blond and gives the enemy time enough to just dodge and attack Naruto and that was something he didn't want to. "**Not to mention that all the times you used, you failed to hit the enemy every single time. You only managed to hit that Kabuto because you had to hold his hand for dear life. Now that you managed to add fuuton chakra to the rasengan, we can try throwing the spiraling shuriken" **– Explained Kyuubi, earning a thinking pose from Naruto.

"Throwing the rasengan was something even Jiraya couldn't do, not either Yondaime. Jiraya once told me that once the rasengan escaped the hand's grasp, it was impossible to maintain the rotation and the spiraling ball ends up dissipating" – Said Naruto to which Kyuubi thought about something as well, getting an idea which might work. **"I admit that is quite difficult to maintain the technique once it escapes from the hand, however with fuuton chakra spinning around the ball, the rotation will remain until the attack hits the target". **

"Well, it's getting late, the last one on the c ranked missing-nins is close to here so I'll rest for today and we could hunt her in the morning" – Said Naruto before going to bed and rest. Ikazuki Misao escaped the village after witnessing the death of her lover for unknown reasons. When Naruto read the name of the man, he was surprised to see that he was an Uchiha by the name of Shisui. Truth be told, Naruto didn't know who this man was. According to the book, Misao was gone rogue for ten years now and this time, the blond was only six years old. Also, Naruto was reluctant to kill Misao. The woman's only crime was only to leave the village and nothing else. Naruto was also wondering why no hunter-nin ever went after her, seeing that the woman was gone for more than ten years now and thus far, her page was not scrapped off the book.

* * *

**---In Konoha---**

Looking at the village on the horizon, Hana stopped to check on Kuromaru's pups only to see both of them sniffing the huskies triplets. She smiled upon realizing that with the help of that hunter-nin, which she had the conviction it was indeed Naruto, the Inuzuka family was now complete once again. She remembered how easily the hunter-nin interacted with one of her triplets. It was really the first time someone outside the Inuzuka clan every managed to do this and Hana wondered what the dogs thought of that hunter-nin. Truth be told, the Inuzuka clan measured their lovers firstly by how he or she interacts with the dogs.

Changing the subject quickly inside her mind, Hana entered the village and signed some papers with Izumo and Kotetsu. After that, she went to her house to drop the pups and then she would step inside the Hokage's office. Walking through the village, she greeted some of her acquaintances. A while later, she bumped into Kurenai and the two turned to talk a little while charging towards the Inuzuka compound; Kurenai asked where Hana went and also asked why two more dogs. Hana smiled and explained to the crimson eyed jounin that the two new ones were rescued with the help of a hunter-nin. Kurenai was suspicious when said ninja position appeared. Kurenai often times wondered how Naruto was doing out there since it's been a while and she received no news of him.

Being a jounin, she heard amongst her peers on how a new hunter-nin is cleaning out the book much faster than any other hunter-nin ever did. She heard that this new hunter-nin took out the entire C ranked missing-nins division and it's one more left for him to go for the B ranked ones. She had suspicious, though, because one of the jounins described the man using all black and a sword strapped on his back, but she didn't have proof that it was Naruto. Focusing on Hana's conversation, she heard the Inuzuka chunnin reveal that the hunter-nin was blond and she heard Hana questioning to herself how many blonds she knew in Konoha. Upon hearing this, she had the proof she needed. Naruto was the only blond haired person apart from the Hokage and he's the only blond hunter-nin he knew, so of course, should be him.

Kurenai heard Hana describing how the hunter-nin dealt with the Inuzuka missing-nin and was surprised to see Naruto using a fuuton ninjutsu that beat the Inuzuka's Gatsuuga, being this the Inuzuka's strongest attack alongside the companion. Upon arriving at the compound, Kurenai bid her farewell to Hana and promised to meet some time later. Hana smiled and brought the pups inside the house. Once inside, the two pups ran towards their father's scent and left Hana and her dogs to bring the news to Tsume and Kiba who were having lunch.

"Oh Hana-chan, I see you managed to retrieve the pups, then. Tell me about it" – Asked Tsume, earning Kiba's interest at the story. "Well, I met with the hunter-nin and then we went to search for Takashi. When we found him, the man had the nerve of wanting to catch up with his niece. Surprisingly, the hunter-nin stepped aside and said that he didn't want to meddle into family business, which pissed me off even more than Takashi" – Said Hana earning a snicker from Kiba and laughter from Tsume from seeing Hana getting rather angry. Snarling at her family, she decided to continue. "Well, after the hunter-nin returned to battle, he turned to piss Takashi off by taunting him. After the man's veins popped of his forehead, he engaged the hunter-nin with our clan's jutsu, but was stopped by the hunter-nin's surprisingly mastery of fuuton ninjutsu, thus killing him for good. The strange thing was that the hunter-nin didn't attack the pups, even if they were attacking him. I found it strange as well that one of my huskies didn't bark to the hunter-nin and even let him scratch the husky's ear" – Described Hana, surprising Tsume and Kiba, since first of all, both of them knew how dangerous it was to lift a hand in front of the huskies and also the fact that Hana changed the angry mood at the end of the description.

"Where is the hunter-nin now Hana-chan? I assumed he had to send Konoha a proof of the kill" – Asked Tsume to which Hana shrugged, indicating that she didn't know. "The hunter-nin sealed Takashi's head inside a scroll and then burned off his body. I figured that he would have an inside channel in order to send said scroll to either the hokage or the hunter-nin commander. Well, mother, I need to go talk to Hokage-sama about the mission, I have some questions for her as well" – Said Hana before walking back to the door before she saw Akamaru sleeping under the table. _I know it's you Naruto. I remember Kiba saying that you were the only one who didn't regarded Akamaru as being a pet, but a companion instead. I want to get to know you better. _– Thought Hana before opening the door and going straight to the Hokage's office.

Tsume chose not to mention to Hana in front of Kiba, since she knew Kiba would piss her off with ease. She knew her daughter and knew when she was intrigued about something. Hana was always a very curious woman and Tsume presumed that her daughter's curiosity was towards that hunter-nin she mentioned earlier. Tsume didn't know of many fuuton users in Konoha and the last one she knew was murdered by Akatsuki. She would ask the hokage later about Takashi's head and then ask a few things about this hunter-nin.

**

* * *

**

**---At Tsunade's office---**

Already inside the Hokage's office, Hana presented the report of the fight and also the pups retrieval back to Konoha. Tsunade smiled at the success of the mission, but wondered why she had the suspicion that Hana wanted to say more than just what happened at the mission. True to her worries, Hana approached her. "Tsunade-sama, I was wondering if you could tell me something about that hunter-nin?" – Asked Hana to which Tsunade was surprised, but maintained the neutrality for now. "Hana, I can only answer so much without endangering his or her identity" – Said Tsunade, allowing the younger girl to ask away. "I managed to see that he had blond hair and told that he knew an Inuzuka whose companion had white fur, thus I'm sure he was referring to my brother Kiba. Therefore, is he N…." – Said Hana before Tsunade stopped her from continuing.

"Hana, I see that you figured out his identity. That being said, we're going to take a walk and I'll fill you in with what happened. I don't want to risk someone overhearing what I have to say." – Said Tsunade to which Hana became serious and nodded. Once outside and walking towards the park, Tsunade told everything to Hana. The Kurenai episode, Naruto choosing to become a hunter-nin so that Akatsuki won't come to the village, Jiraya's counter intelligence mission, everything. Hana was surprised about all this and asked the Hokage why she was telling everything to her. Tsunade smiled and replied. "I happen to know that Inuzukas are loyal to the village, hence they are loyal to the Hokage. The fact that you know about Naruto's whereabouts now puts you inside our plan. Hana, this is an 'A' ranked secret and you'll be prohibited to discuss any of this without either mine of Jiraya's authorization" – Said Tsunade to which Hana nodded and then turned to ask more about the blond.

"Ah Tsunade-sama, I would like to know a few more things if I may" – Asked Hana to which Tsunade nodded, letting her continue. "Well, I happen to realize how Naruto treats my family's dogs and it's safe to say that not all men in Konoha treat them like they should. After I saw Naruto petting one of my dogs so easily, I began to wonder about something. I happen to know of his tenant and although he smells like a fox, neither I nor the dogs sensed any evil presence inside of him. I figured that at least my dogs would bark at him" – Said Hana to which Tsunade nodded and smiled at the girl's curiosity. "I don't know how, but If what you said is true, then Naruto either is in total control over the fox inside of him or the blond was right all along. You see, before he left to become a hunter-nin, Naruto told me that he and the fox shared his body. I was hesitant to believe that Naruto had so much resolve in order to be able to control a demon's urge, but now that you said so, I tend to believe he was right" – Said Tsunade to which Hana was surprised.

She remembered hearing this from Kurenai, but she also didn't believe it. However, seeing her dogs at ease with him and the hokage also telling her this, she now believe Naruto was right. It would certainly explain the scent and also this new being's behavior. Suddenly, Hana's perverted mind sprang to action and she imagined seeing Naruto behaving like an animal while ravaging her. Tsunade wondered why Hana suddenly spaced off like that and wondered why all this curiosity towards Naruto. It took a while until she remembered something interested about an Inuzuka female. She remembered how Hana's mother Tsume behaved upon meeting her now deceased husband and wondered if perhaps Hana is feeling the same thing towards a feral Naruto.

Waking up from her daydream, which consisted of Naruto ripping all her clothes, Hana apologized at the Hokage for doing this and asked her to be dismissed. Safe to say, Tsunade knew about an Inuzuka's sexual behavior, thus she dismissed the girl. Hana vanished quickly and went towards somewhere private in order to blow off some steam. It wouldn't do for her to be anywhere near someone when she was turned on. Arriving at the forest of death, she was able to relieve and then rest on the tree she landed on. It was safe to say that Hana was even more curious than before and vowed to meet the blond in the future.

**

* * *

**

**---With Naruto---**

Oblivious to the fact that someone was thinking about him, Naruto checked out of the hotel he was staying at and went to a clear area to initiate his training. "**Right, you already got your new set of weights to increase the training pace, summon some kage bunshins and I'll explain to you about the technique called Katon Zukokku **(Fire Release: Head Mincing Pain Jutsu)**. ****The real you will be practicing the usual katas and then we'll focus on the Rasenshuriken**" – Explained Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded and summoned fifty kage bunshins and took his sword and began striking at the many invisible enemies while his kage bunshins were focusing on the new fire technique. Little did Naruto know, though, that he was being watched.

Avoiding the hunter-nin for kami know how long, Misao already was able to predict when another one would come to take her life away just because she committed the crime of leaving Konoha. Uchiha Shisui's death was like killing her instead and Misao couldn't stay in Konoha any longer from fear of remembering Shisui's face any longer. At the time, she thought about how weak she was for leaving for a petty reason like this. However, some time later, she didn't regret her decision seeing that she was able to meet the one who cured her heartache and started a family with. She continued her training as a genjutsu specialist and a few taijutsu katas just in case the hunters managed to dispel the genjutsu. It was this way that she managed to escape from the hunters or take him out and drop them at an unknown location.

Now, this new hunter-nin was near her and she suspected he would be after her very soon. Back to Naruto, his clones had already learned the technique which consisted of expelling fire from the user's mouth and then quickly spread it towards the enemy, burning anything in its path. He also got used to the new set of weights and was going through the katas when Kyuubi stopped him and told him to now focus on the Rasenshuriken. Naruto acknowledged and put his sword back to its holster. Summoning the two kage bunshins, he stopped upon realizing that he now had sufficient control over the rasengan in order to do it by himself. However, he still needed one bunshin to supply the ball with fuuton chakra, hence why he dispelled the other clone and performed the rasengan. After, while the real Naruto kept the ball's rotation and strength, the clone supplied fuuton chakra, thus finishing the Rasenshuriken.

Meanwhile, Misao was gaping at the amount of chakra being used and the amount of control this hunter-nin was using to perform this technique. Misao wasn't ignorant to the fact that very few ninjas could attempt the Yondaime's technique. She knew that apart from the very creator, only the sannin Jiraya and a respected Anbu captain called Hatake Kakashi could, although she never saw him using. For this hunter-nin to be able to do it, it meant that either Jiraya or Kakashi taught it to him. Also, Misao was searching her mind and realized that the real rasengan consisted of pure chakra manipulation while this hunter-nin managed to not only complete the chakra manipulation, but also managed to incorporate his elemental chakra into the ball as well, thus completing the Yondaime's technique.

Now she was afraid for her life. If this guy was after her, she didn't have hopes of surviving a confrontation. Turning to escape as far away as possible, Misao made a terrible mistake and ended up kicking a stone which in turn produced enough noise for Naruto to see that he was being watched. Vanishing in a second and appearing at the source of the sound, Naruto was surprised to see his last c ranked target staring directly at him. Naruto could see that the woman was scared for her life which he could only presume that she saw him using the Rasenshuriken. From Naruto could see, the woman was very pretty and he knew the photo didn't do her justice at all. Misao was at her thirties right now but she had the body of a twenty year old girl. She had red her, black eyes and a skin that any woman would die for. She was dressed in a gray fighting kimono which showed Naruto that the woman wanted to hide, but she would be prepared in case the enemy found her position.

Misao didn't want to attack since she knew he would crush her easily, so she chose genjutsu. "**Magen Narakumi no Jutsu **(Hell Viewing Technique)". However, Naruto didn't even move which indicated to her, that either he dissipated as quickly as it was casted or he was immune to the technique. Little did she know that this hunter-nin had two minds instead of one and although she managed to catch Naruto's mind, Kyuubi used his chakra and instantly blocked any genjutsu from interfering with the battle. "Misao, before you decide to attack me one more time with genjutsu, hear me out for a second. I happen to see your picture from the bingo book and I also know that the only crime you ever committed so far was to abandon the village. Whether it was for a valid reason or not, it's not up to me to judge. Now, what I want to know is how you managed to run from the hunter-nins for 10 years?" – Asked Naruto to which Misao wondered what this man was talking about. Up until now, all hunter-nins that came after her didn't bother to open their mouths and started attacking, but this one chose instead to chat. "Don't you want to kill me; after all it's your job isn't it?" – Asked Misao.

"My job is to catch criminals that left Konoha from either murdering someone or stealing something valuable. I don't consider leaving the village a felony worthy of my attention, so tell me how did you manage to escape Konoha's hunter-nin squad" – Insisted Naruto to which Misao sighed seeing that this man hold no intention of either capturing her or causing her harm. "For 10 years of my life, I've been training my genjutsu up to perfection in order to escape the hunter's trail. However, there were those who managed to dispel my techniques, hence the fact that I had to defend myself with pure taijutsu. Eventually, I got lucky and managed to use a genjutsu which would render the man unconscious and then escape as far away as possible. Up until now, I've managed to escape by using genjutsu, but now that you so easily dispelled it, I guess it's no use to even fight you" – Said Misao, already admitting defeat.

Naruto, however, was still reluctant to kill this woman simply because he knew deep inside that Misao wasn't a bad person at all. Misao for her part wondered what possessed this man to not finish her off. "I can see deeply inside your eyes that you are not a bad person. My job is to hunt those who present a threat to Konoha and those who live in it. You on the other hand, chose to leave for grief over Uchiha Shisui's death. I happen to know a woman who also left the village after the loss of her lover and her brother due to the war and I also happen to know that having some time alone is the best cure to all heartaches. My only advice for you is to leave Fire Country and head to a place far from here. I'll send a message to Konoha saying that you're already dead by bandits, thus it will take Konoha away from you" – Said Naruto to which Misao gaped at what he said.

Up to now, Misao didn't know of any shinobi who would simply let her go like that. However, this hunter-nin not only did let her go, but also would help her by taking Konoha's trail off her. But why would he do this for someone he didn't know. Why this man would let her go just like that. Those questions appeared like crazy into Misao's mind up to the point that she had to ask him. Naruto's answer, though, was enough to change the woman's image of hunter-nins for good. "No one should suffer for what he or she didn't cause it. You just wanted to leave Konoha and never come back. Although what you did was a crime to Konoha's shinobi law of conduct, you left for emotional reasons. However, should any one recognize you from the bingo book, they will try to catch you so it's imperative that you leave fire country at once" – Said Naruto to which Misao nodded and smiled at him.

"I'll be forever grateful Hunter-nin, thank you" – Said Misao before vanishing and never look back. Naruto sighed seeing that he needed to send another report to Tsunade and hope that she falls for it. **"I hope that in the future, you don't be so merciful with the other opponents. I'd hate to see you fall for the enemy's trap because you felt he or she was telling the truth"** – Snarled Kyuubi, not at all entertained with the idea of Naruto choosing his targets from her on out. Naruto sighed seeing that no matter what happened, a demon would always have the instincts of one.

"_Her eyes told me all I needed to know Kyuubi. Just because a ninja is listed in the bingo book, said person isn't necessarily a criminal or a thief. As a matter of fact, as the ranks goes up, surely we will face opponents who, although deserved the rank because of skills, didn't deserve it based on their actions against Konoha. Misao was an example of that. Besides, I'd have such a bitchy conscience if I were to take a life of an innocent person who in my opinion, did the same thing as Tsunade-sama did" _– Said Naruto without much left to argue to which Kyuubi could answer with a 'whatever and an order to head back to training'.

Acknowledging the order, Naruto returned to the clear area he once was and continued on the Rasenshuriken manipulation. Because of the success over the next step in fuuton manipulation, Naruto found that the spiral shuriken on his hand wasn't so much near his hand any more, thus hovering a little distance away from Naruto's hand. This proved that one; the technique wouldn't hurt him as much as it did in the past and two, the third phase of fuuton manipulation increase Naruto's control over the technique. "**This is as far as we're able for the moment. If you need to use this technique, settle a kage bunshin to deliver the attack instead of you. This way, we won't have to worry about getting your arm hurt"** – Said Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded and thanked the fox.

Since it was already night time, the blond decided to head back to the hotel he once was but this time, he would be henged into a civilian so that no one would recognize him. Once he managed to get a room, he picked up the bingo book and looked at the first one from the b ranked section. The man's name is Shiranui Aoi and he was a jounin before leaving Konoha. According to the bingo book, Aoi was a master of suiton ninjutsu and also very proficient at taijutsu. Naruto, however, frowned because the book didn't say anything about the man's second affinity, which was needed for him to become a jounin.

Setting that lack of information aside for now, Naruto learned that the man was responsible for the death of two chunnins at a mission. According to the book, Aoi was trying to set up a trap for the enemy, but he pushed things too far and the enemy managed to learn about the set up, thus killing Aoi's teammates. At the time, the man left the mission from fear of being murdered as well. Because of his actions, Sandaime Hokage was furious at the man, thus holding him responsible for the chunnin's lives and demoted him back to genin. The man left because of the punishment; therefore he was declared a missing-nin.

The only problem was that the news of his location was vague at best. The book could only point his last location which by the way, was near Tanzaku Gai. After that, Naruto knew nothing of said man. Naruto wasn't so much of a tracker, focusing only on train his fighting skills. Therefore, he would need to ask around and maybe he would be lucky enough to find the guy. "**Why don't you see with that frog of yours if there is any tracker you could use?" **– Said Kyuubi to which Naruto thought about it. It was true, he could check with Gamakichi to see if they have a tracker in the family. However, if someone would see him summoning a toad, Naruto would be in serious danger of someone uncovering his identity. It wouldn't hurt to ask Gamakichi, though. Summoning his partner inside the room, Naruto realized his mistake upon seeing that Gamakichi was seconds away from breaking the floor below.

"Gamakichi, would you please diminish your size a bit?" – Asked Naruto, though a bit too calm for the situation. The toad quickly complied and Naruto sighed in relief upon not hearing the noise of wood breaking anymore. "**Hey bro, why did you summon me?" – **asked Gamakichi to which Naruto greeted the toad and turned to question the now little toad. "Gamakichi, I need to track an enemy and I'm in need of a toad tracker" – Asked Naruto to which Gamakichi smiled. **"Of course I do bro. I am"** – Smiled Gamakichi, earning a scowl from Naruto who didn't know that and could have summoned him more. However, Naruto's face showed Gamakichi that he was hesitant to believe that the toad in front of him was a tracker.

"Not that I don't believe in you buddy, but I never would have thought a toad would be able to track someone. The pervert never mentioned of a toad that could do that" – Said Naruto to which Gamakichi scoffed at the blond, even though he wasn't at fault. **"By channeling chakra, anyone can increase their senses. We toads happen to use nature chakra, thus being able to feel all presences within a large area"** – Explained Gamakichi with an air of superiority, however Naruto was frowning his eyebrow in doubt at the mention of nature chakra and he asked the toad what it was. **"Perhaps in time, I could explain it to you, but for now just trust that I have such ability, therefore I'll be able to help you in whatever you need. Just summon me and tell me what you need" **– Said Gamakichi to which Naruto nodded before seeing the toad vanish once again. After that, Naruto drifted off to sleep.

* * *

**---The next day---**

Checking out under the disguise of a civilian, Naruto went towards the last location of his enemy, where he would, then summon Gamakichi to search for Aoi. Tanzaku Gai wasn't far from where he was and on the way, Naruto could meditate on fuuton manipulation and its effects on his techniques. So far, he only tested his new abilities with the Rasenshuriken. He assumed that he wouldn't need to focus on how much fuuton chakra he would need to use for a technique. "**Also, the fact that with your mastery over the wind element around you, you can use it to your benefit. For example, you could create a defensive fuuton ninjutsu just by focusing on the wind around you. I could give an idea for the name if you want to"** – Said Kyuubi to which Naruto laughed at the fox's clear interest in learning another element apart from fire. "_Humor me fox, what name would you give to the technique_ – Thought Naruto to which the fox cleared his throat and said **Fuuton Kazetoku no Jutsu (**Wind Release: Wind Shield Jutsu).

Naruto admitted he was very impressed by the fox's creation and praised the fox for it, though it was fueled with so much sarcasm that Naruto received a snarl in return for his complement. It was one thing that pleasured the blond greatly was piss the fox off. All the grumbling, the snorting, the curse mumblings; Naruto couldn't help himself. OF course, the fox also enjoyed pissing the blond off seeing as he often made comments that would send the blond's pride to the floor. Naruto and Kyuubi was so involved in their conversation, that when Naruto stopped to see where he was, he looked up to see the huge walls of Tanzaku Gai right in front of him. "_Huh, guess I lost the track of time. I guess good things don't last. Well, I guess we'll get to postpone our little verbal game Kyuubi. I have a criminal to catch"__** – **_Thought Naruto to which Kyuubi nodded, saying that after this man, Naruto would focus on creating the wind shield.

Summoning Gamakichi, Naruto asked the now little toad to focus on all presences that possesses a suiton affinity. Since Konoha was a few miles away from the place, Naruto was sure the toad wouldn't be able to reach that far. Acknowledging the request, Gamakichi began to summon nature chakra and instantly all presences within a certain distance appeared as though Gamakichi were side by side with them. Focusing on the presence of suiton chakra, Gamakichi was happy to tell Naruto that he indeed managed to sense a few presences. "Gamakichi, exclude the presences that are near Konoha or heading that direction, this guy is jounin level. He would avoid Konoha at all cost" – Said Naruto to which Gamakichi nodded and returned to his focus. Excluding those near to Konoha, Gamakichi was able to focus on a unique and very strong presence a couple of miles northwest from their position, earning a nod from Naruto who in turn appreciated his help and told the toad that he would summon in case of necessity.

After the toad vanished, Naruto channeled some chakra and charged towards said man's destination. On the way, though, the blond was hesitant. This will be his first high level opponent since he became a hunter-nin and now he was all alone against the guy. After a while, Naruto landed on top of a tree where he could see a small house. Certainly, his opponent was there waiting for him. Nevertheless, Naruto now couldn't just barge in without worrying if the enemy already knew of his presence. If this Aoi character managed to find his location before Naruto realizes, the man could very well sneak from behind and use a potent ninjutsu to take Naruto down. **"Naruto, behind you"** – Shouted Kyuubi, thus alerting Naruto to a bunch of kunais that were attacking him from behind. Without hesitation, Naruto jumped away from the kunais and took his sword.

"Well, if it isn't another hunter-nin who is fool enough to take me out. You have the skills kid since you were able to sense me sneaking behind you like that. However, skills alone won't win this battle" – Said Aoi before dropping into his taijutsu stance which scared Naruto a little bit.

**

* * *

**

**---In Konoha---**

Knocking at the Hokage's office door, Uzuki Gaeshi entered inside after getting Tsunade's authorization. Tsunade for her part, upon seeing said man, frowned a bit. She never enjoyed the man's presence much and seeing as he now had news of Naruto, she now had to bare his presence more than needed before. "What is it Uzuki, I'm much occupied, here" – Said Tsunade to which the leader nodded. "Oh, just wanted to say that Shi sent me a very interesting message. According to him one Ikasuki Misao was already killed by a bandit attack near her place. Now that her page is clear of the book, Shi has already begun to clear the B ranked section of the missing-nins. The boy is restless Hokage-sama, he even beat my old record. Indeed he is an interesting individual. I'm following his career with great interest" – Said Gaeshi before smiling upon seeing the surprised look displayed by Tsunade. "According to his file, all the six 'c' ranked missing-nins were killed by him and now he'll pass on to the 'b' ranked section which is far wider than the c ranked one. Approximately three to one I'm afraid" – Continued Gaeshi and still smiled upon seeing that Tsunade had yet to recover from the shock of hearing about Naruto killing six missing-nins in such a small period of time.

It has been a couple of months since he left to become a hunter-nin and Tsunade wondered if Naruto would ever come back to the village at least to rest for a while. However, she knew better that even If he did, he wouldn't alert anyone of his presence. And he would come only for supplies and then leave the next day. Sighing in frustration from missing the blond terribly, Tsunade asked the man in front of her who would Naruto go for now that he went to the 'b' ranked. Gaeshi figured that Tsunade would want to know who Naruto's targets were so he asked the blond hunter as to his way of deciding who he would go for first. "According to Shi, he doesn't follow a decided strategy. Instead, he's following the book order, so it's safe to say that the next enemy is the first on the 'b' list called Shiranui Aoi. This man is jounin level ninja with mastery in suiton ninjutsu and taijutsu. We should be expecting the man's head anytime now, judging by Shi's period between the last hunt and the next" – Said Aoi to which Tsunade nodded and hoped the blond would be able to beat this Aoi fellow.

**

* * *

**

**---Back to Naruto---**

Facing Aoi, Naruto was once again reluctant. The fear of not being able to beat a jounin level ninja still overwhelmed him, thus breaking his concentration. So, Naruto was doing all he could to dodge the man's furious attacks. "What's the matter kid? I thought you came here to beat me" – Shouted Aoi as he delivered a solid punch directly at Naruto's chest, thus sending him straight to the tree. Using the momentum, Naruto flipped his body and landed with his two feet on the tree. While Naruto was analyzing the man's fighting. Someone was screaming inside of him. **"Naruto, you can't keep defending all the time. Look at you. You're afraid of the man in front of you. Why?" **– Asked Kyuubi to which Naruto snarled.

_I never faced a jounin level shinobi alone Kyuubi, I don't know if I can win this fight" __**- **_Thought Naruto before he heard the fox scream even louder inside his head. "**Damn imbecile. You've faced tons of S ranked ninjas all your life. Also, after sixteen years, how dare you say you're facing this man alone"** – Said Kyuubi, earning a surprised and questioned look by Naruto. **"Do you think I would give you the pleasure of leaving you alone? You said it yourself, you and I share this human body, now use the furiseirei and beat this man to pieces" – **Shouted Kyuubi.

Naruto, after hearing this from the fox, smiled a bit and cursed his lack of memory. The fox was right, he wouldn't give the blond the satisfaction of being left alone for a while and Naruto realized that, even after all the hardships in life, the damn fox always stood by him, even if he was obliged to, but that's beside the point right now. When Naruto opened his eyes and saw Aoi approaching, Naruto smiled and did some hand seals for **Fuuton Kaze no Hageshii **(Wind Release: Furious Wind Jutsu). Instantly, Naruto was revolved with a powerful wind force, thus protecting him of Aoi's attack as well as send the man flying.

Naruto didn't even let the man land and summoned some of Kyuubi's chakra, before making another set of hand seals for **Katon Goukakyuu no Jutsu **(Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu). Aoi for his part wondered what animal suddenly bit the hunter-nin to make him react as quickly as he did. The fuuton technique was off the hook and the share force of the wind was enough to send him flying. When he saw the fireball approaching, the man began to curse this hunter-nin and flipped his body, in order to face the incoming fireball. Doing some hand seals for **Suiton Suijinheki no Jutsu **(Water Release: Water Barrier Jutsu), thus stopping the incoming fireball.

Upon landing safely on the ground, Aoi looked at the hunter-nin and realized that it wouldn't be good to underestimate this opponent. In the beginning, the Hunter-nin was being overwhelmed by his attacks. Out of nowhere, the hunter began to fight better and even managed to use a sequence of pretty tough ninjutsu sequence. _Uhh, perhaps there is more to this boy than I thought. Great, I could use a challenge – _Thought Aoi as he once again dropped into his taijutsu stance and attacked Naruto once more. However, the result of it was quite different since Naruto was attacking as well. During the assault, the man was having difficulty dodging the sword's slashes and landing a hit at the blond. It was as If the hunter-nin transformed somehow.

Eventually, Naruto managed to attack Aoi, making a long diagonal cut beginning from the man's left shoulder, going all the way to his stomach. Needless to say Aoi screamed in unbearable like he didn't in a while, simply because up until now, no hunter-nin managed to get this far. Snarling in rage, Aoi was now losing his temper and according to Kyuubi most likely to waste high level of chakra by performing all the techniques he knew. True to the fox's worries, Aoi began with the hand seals sequence and sent a water dragon towards Naruto. The blond barely managed to avoid the dragon until he saw Aoi making another sequence of hand seals. "**Suiton Taihoudan no Jutsu **(Water Release: Large Projectile Jutsu).

Once again trusting his reflexes, Naruto managed to dodge the water blast to which Aoi snarled even more. "Stay still you bastard, I'll kill you even if the last thing I'll do" – Shouted Aoi before once again made hand seals for **Suiton Suikodan no Jutsu **(Water Release: Water Shark Projectile Jutsu). This time the water hit Naruto dead on, which made Aoi to shout in victory until he saw that instead of the hunter-nin's body, a tree log appeared, thus getting the hit. At this time, Aoi had enough chakra to one more jutsu. Sighing in frustration upon having to use this jutsu, he began the long series of hand signs and shouted **Suiton Suishouha **(Water Release: Water Collision Destruction Jutsu). What Naruto saw nearly astounded him.

The size of the wave was enough to envelop Kyuubi's cage. Finding no way of escaping the tidal wave that was approaching, Naruto decided to charge straight through the wave with his **Fuuton Rasengan. **At first, Aoi smiled upon thinking that the hunter-nin, foolishly, charged against an A ranked ninjutsu. However, when he saw the blond land on the ground, coughing a little bit because of a little bit of water being swallowed, the man cursed the hunter-nin and Konoha from not leaving him the hell alone. Not even leaving Aoi time to do anything, Naruto summoned some of Kyuubi's chakra and enveloped his sword with katon chakra (**Katon Endou no Tsurugi **– Fire Release: Flame Sword Jutsu) and charged against Aoi, performing a swift cut at the man's neck, thus decapitating him.

Hopefully, the head was alright and the technique's fire ended up burning the man's body, cutting the time down by half. Upon looking at his first jounin level victim burning on the floor, Naruto was picturing every move made by both him and Aoi. The battle began one sided with Aoi beating Naruto to the ground. When he gathered confidence in himself, Naruto began landing some attacks of his own until he managed to make the deep cut, thus hurting Aoi a lot and making him lose his mind in attacking Naruto with all he had. At the end, Naruto remembered him charging against the wave with a fuuton rasengan and wondered what possessed him to do that. Truth be told, Naruto had never tested the elemental rasengan against other elements and he surely didn't know what to expect. It was pure luck that the rasengan managed to open a hole and pass Naruto through, thus, escaping the technique.

"**You did ****well; however you'll need to be more focused on your abilities if we want to survive the stronger foes. Now, summon that toad of yours and send the man's head. In the meantime, you'll now complete the Rasenshuriken"** – Said Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded before summoning Gamakichi and telling him to deliver the scroll to Tsunade of the Leader. After the toad vanished with the scroll, Naruto returned to summoning this three kage bunshin and begin the creation of his ultimate jutsu.

* * *

**---In Konoha---**

Back in Konoha, Gaeshi and Tsunade were discussing certain aspects considering Naruto's kill method. So far, from what they could see from the heads that were sent, the cut was filled with katon chakra which demonstrated that Naruto somehow was able to create a flame sword. Tsunade almost fell from her chair upon hearing this news from Gaeshi, but quickly remembered that Kyuubi must have taught the boy this particular and yet mysterious jutsu. Suddenly, both sensed someone appearing via summon and smiled upon seeing Gamakichi with a scroll on his mouth. **"Tsunade-sama, the bro asked me to deliver this scroll. According to him, it contains the first name on the 'b' ranked list" – **Said Gamakichi to which Gaeshi smiled and Tsunade frowned at the man from supposedly know Naruto better than her.

"I appreciate Gamakichi. However, tell Naruto that such amount will take a while to gather, since its double from a normal C ranked. Tell him to send you here in thirty minutes so that we can prepare" – Said Tsunade to which the toad nodded and vanished, leaving Tsunade alone with a smiling Gaeshi. "Okay, you're right. He did send the guy's head just like you said he would; now I'm very busy Gaeshi. Gamakichi will be here shortly and I'll have to send Naruto the money" – Said Tsunade not at all satisfied about saying the man was right. Gaeshi for his turn smiled even more and bowed before leaving the premises. _Damn you Naruto, because of you, now I have to deal with this man – _Thought Tsunade as she slammed a bunch of signed reports for Shizune to take later.

* * *

**---With Naruto---**

When Gamakichi arrived to the location, he wasn't prepared to the sight before him. When he saw Naruto, he realized that said blond was holding what seemed to be a huge ball of energy surrounded by a fuuma shuriken sized white energy, in which the toad assumed it was fuuton chakra. One another thing was that the toad, although massive in size and weight, was having difficulty keeping his members on the ground. Naruto for his part, upon seeing that the toad was back, stopped the technique and went towards the still stunned toad.

It was after a while that Gamakichi woke up from his daydreaming and told Naruto about what Tsunade said. Naruto acknowledged the information and went back to performing his new fuuton ninjutsu which, although old in theory, was in fact new in practice. Naruto and Kyuubi thought together of this technique, but it would eventually appear since the Rasenshuriken is identical to the **Fuuton Rasengan**, but with more fuuton chakra enveloping the ball of energy. Now that Naruto achieved the last stage of fuuton manipulation, he was able to create his ultimate jutsu. Once the disk was formed on the bunshins head, the clone charged against a mountain and hit it with the technique. The result was as deadly as the technique's appearance. As the technique hit the target, an immense dome of wind chakra erupted, thus not only destroying everything inside, but also fuuton chakra was responsible for cutting the stones into tiny pieces.

After seeing the damage done, Naruto smiled upon wondering what this technique could do to an enemy of his upon seeing that the mountain is now almost non-existent. After all this, Naruto landed on the ground in pure exhaustion and rested near one of the remaining trees. He asked either Kyuubi or Gamakichi to wake him up in half an hour so that he could send the toad to collect his bounty on Aoi's corpse. After said time passed, the toad retrieved the money and Naruto set sailed on his new target.


	7. Counter Intelligence

**Chapter 7 – ****Counter Intelligence**

The sunlight presented in Konoha and the people were gathering on the streets. The shinobis were already hopping on top of the buildings rushing to their destinations. However, some ninjas didn't need to worry about waking up soon. Those were the shinobis who fulfilled their services inside the village. That was the case of one Inuzuka Hana. As the head of the veterinary center of Konoha, she had to be there every day at 9am. So, she usually wakes up when her dogs call her. Today wasn't any different as one of the triplets jumped to her bed, thus waking her up.

Opening her eyes, Hana was aware of one of her dogs waking her up and got up, before looking straight for the window of her bedroom. From there, she could see her clan's house and some land of Konoha. After a bark from one of her companions, she turned and smiled at the dog, only to realize that this one was the one who Naruto got to scratch its ears. She still wondered what this was supposed to mean, simply because up until the blond, no one aside from her family was able to get close to her dogs and even be able to caress its ears. "What do you want to tell me? Do you like him?" – Asked the girl to the dog, before said animal barked in response and started licking her. Hana giggled at the dog's behavior and got her answer. Getting out of the bed, she went to the bathroom to take a bath and then dress up to meet her mother for breakfast.

Downstairs, she looked at the table only to see Tsume Inuzuka petting her companion close to the ear. "Good morning Kaa-san? Slept well?" – Greeted Hana as she opened the fridge and grabbed some orange juice, before sitting on the table. Tsume looked at her daughter and smiled before saying that her night was okay. Said woman was looking intently at Hana while she drank the juice and Tsume knew her daughter's curiosity didn't phase one bit. Tsume always wondered why her daughter didn't find one person that she liked on a date. Apart from the jerks she dated, so far no one was considerate of her attention. Now, after she returned from that mission with the hunter-nin, she knew what her daughter was thinking about. All Inuzuka women were the same in a way; they all have fantasies of strong men and their strong personalities. That hunter-nin must have caused some serious impressions on her daughter for her to be this curious.

"Hana-chan, tell me what's wrong? You look like you have a doubt in your mind and you can't solve, tell me about it" – Asked Tsume to which Hana looked at her mother, while wondering if she was this obvious. "I don't know mother, I can't take my head off that hunter-nin. He bothers me like no other men ever did. First, he was able to caress one of my triplets like he was one of our own and then, when he fought Kuromaru's pups, he was careful not to hurt them as in he knew about the owner's feelings towards our companions. Aside from the family, no one ever did that before" – Stated Hana to which Tsume nodded before smiling from knowing that it was the hunter-nin after all. "I admit that shinobi like this is tough to find, but they do exist. You seem very fond of this hunter-nin person. Do I know him?" – Asked Tsume to which Hana looked at her mother as if she was afraid of telling the man's identity.

"I think you do, but the Hokage prohibited me of saying his name, sorry mother" – Said Hana to which Tsume acknowledged and dismissed the issue of the man's identity. Nonetheless, she saw how said subject was influencing her daughter, so she asked different questions. "Well, if Tsunade-sama told you that, guess it must be important. Well, tell me more about him. You said he used fuuton ninjutsu to beat Takashi, right?" – Asked Tsume to which Hana nodded. "Yes, from what I saw of the technique, it was like a horizontal tornado that went forward and attacked the enemy, just like our family's Gatsuuga, but definitely stronger. Also, I sensed traces of katon chakra so I guess he's proficient in both areas of ninjutsu. Also, he seemed to have a large chakra capacity, since he was able to summon 50 kage bunshins and wasn't even fazed" – Explained Hana, before hearing a whistle in amazement from Tsume.

"Ok, so he's good in ninjutsu, but how about close contact?" – Asked Tsume to which Hana answered saying he was also proficient with a katana. "So, If you what you said is true, then he is at least jounin level. Mastery of two elements and proficiency in kenjutsu, he has all the attributes of a jounin. Now, be serious with me Hana-chan, I'm sure you're not thinking of his abilities, simply because while he seems like a good shinobi, this village produced one of the best in the elemental nations. What is it that you are curious about?" – Asked Tsume, now trapping Hana who in turn wondered how well her mother knew her if she was able to read her face expression so easily. Nonetheless, this was a question she couldn't answer without breaking Naruto's identity, so she used the excuse of how late she was and said goodbye to her mother, who although surprised at her daughter's behavior, couldn't help but smile at seeing her daughter having strong feelings for someone. At least, Tsume would get some answers with the Hokage.

* * *

**---With Naruto---**

After waking up in the woods, Naruto went to the lake nearby to fresh up a little bit. He wasn't interested in finding a hotel to stay the night from missing the woods a little bit. **"Since you've been sleeping, I came with ways to improve your training and I'm proud to say that I found the perfect exercise. Also, I thought of how we could improve the strength of your fuuton ninjutsu"** – Said Kyuubi not even bothering to greet Naruto, not that he was expecting any coming from the fox. "_Morning to you as well fox. Didn't expect you to be so 'enthusiastic' this morning" – _Said Naruto to which Kyuubi snarled at the blond for not accepting help from the elders. **"Damn brat, one of these days, you'll be in trouble and I won't help you"** – Said Kyuubi to which Naruto laughed and replied. "_Yes, right; like you want someone to kill us. Besides, it's not that I don't appreciate your help, it's just that it's a little weird to talk about training only after waking up"__** – **_Said Naruto as he went back to his camp.

"**Anyway, I'm thinking of your fuuton technique called Fuuton Kaze no Hageshii **(Wind Release: Furious Wind Jutsu) **and the restriction said technique does to your body movements. My idea is for you to move even with the wind field around you so that your body becomes adjusted to more strength. Also, I was thinking of a way to power up your fuuton techniques by using my chakra**" – Explained Kyuubi to which Naruto considered the idea over some breakfast which consisted of only fruits and a glass of water. _"How can I use your chakra to use fuuton ninjutsu when I can only use katon ninjutsu with it?"_– Asked Naruto as he finished his meal and went to clean his stuff. **"It seems you forgot that everyone has both normal and elemental type chakra. If you didn't, then you would only be able to do one type of ninjutsu. Now, you could fuse your elemental chakra with my normal chakra, thus enhancing the technique's strength**" – Stated Kyuubi.

Naruto did acknowledge that idea, but for now he just wanted to appreciate some free time and take a look at the bingo book. Scratching an X mark to Aoi's file, he flicked the page for the next one. It seemed that the person was already enlisted as a mist shinobi, so he was out of Konoha's jurisdiction. _Stupid old book, well, moving on._ The next one was right here in Fire Country, but he was very far from Naruto's location which could take a while of travelling. The guy's name was Hideashi Sageki and an ex-jounin of Konoha, not to mention that he was a master in raiton ninjutsu. According to the book, he was charged with stealing some high ranked and also restricted techniques from the Hokage's office, but managed to escape before execution. Naruto felt a bit ashamed that he kind of did the same thing even if he was tricked by Mizuki at the time. "**Personally, I'd prefer you looked at another technique instead of the kage bunshin. Although it serves well for training now, you surely got reliant on said technique and would often get your ass kicked"** – Said Kyuubi to which Naruto snarled at his inmate.

"**What? Is the truth isn't it? Kage bunshin and rasengan were your only attacks. It was disappointing in a way for my vessel to be as weak as you were back then. You managed to learn two ****'A' ranked techniques, but you've never knew each technique's purpose."** – Said Kyuubi not at all minding that he was talking about what happened four years ago. "Whatever damn fur ball; that's in the past. I'm different now. Let's train a little bit before we travel towards our new target" – Said Naruto as he focused some hand seals and his furious wind technique was all around him.

* * *

**---In Konoha---**

Close to the gate, a red-haired woman breathed a little bit before looking up to the village she dreamed of returning to. After leaving Naruto, Kira took quite a while to return to her old village simply because she was afraid of what would happen once she did. She didn't know anyone who was still alive and the only person she could seek was her cousin Anko. However, Kira didn't know about Anko's whereabouts or even where to find her inside the village. She knew, of course, that Anko didn't leave the village because her name wasn't in the bingo book. After signing some dismissal papers at the gate, she entered the village and began scouting up the place. She noticed the fifth head on the Hokage Monument and wondered if Tsunade would give her a place at the hospital just like Naruto said she would. After a little bit of walking, her stomach grumbled from hunger.

She knew only one place that she could eat and that's where she went. Upon entering, though, she saw what appeared to be a woman in a trench coat and purple hair, sitting on the counter, while talking to the bartender. When she approached the counter, the person's face was visible and Kira was happy to find Anko. "Anko-chan, is it really you? I missed you so much" – Screamed Kira, earning the attention of the special jounin who smiled upon recognizing her cousin.

The girls grabbed a table and chose the time to talk about all the time Kira was away from the village. The talk was all fine until a certain blond came up and Anko was surprised. "Wait, you don't mean to tell me that you also made love to Naruto, Kira-chan" – Screamed Anko to which Kira smiled in response. "What, it's not like you haven't as well. Besides, he is very handsome, not to mention that body of his" – Said Kira as she was daydreaming of her time with the blond. Anko, however, was confused. Although she enjoyed sex with Naruto, she was certain his body, although fairly developed, wasn't enough to set a woman on edge. Upon questioning Kira, though, she told Anko that Naruto's body was ripped and strong, thus telling Anko that he must have trained to develop his body up to the level he is right now. Anko was now imagining her having sex with the changed Naruto on top of her and immediately, a little drop of blood came out of her nose.

Kira told Anko about a job at the hospital that Naruto promised her, so she would meet the Hokage. After a while of talking, Anko told Kira that she could stay with her until she found a place to stay. Kira appreciated and said that she did have to meet the hokage shortly and that she would meet Anko back at her place tonight.

* * *

**---At the Hokage's office---**

Tsunade, Shizune and Sakura were at the Hokage's office, discussing about a patient at the hospital that needed some sensitive surgery. Their discussion was pretty much over when Sakura turned to Tsunade. "Tsunade-sama, where do you think Naruto's mission will finish? It's been a while and he didn't come back yet" – Asked Sakura, catching Tsunade by surprise since she didn't expect her apprentice to ask about the blond. "That's up to Jiraya to know; he is with him at the moment. Last I heard, Naruto was visiting some of our spy network near Tea Country. He is scheduled to meet all of them before returning, however even I don't know the extent of his spy network, so it could take a while" – Explained Tsunade to which Sakura nodded and looked down a bit. She missed the blond, although not for second reasons.

Sakura never was much interested in Naruto in that way, but she always considered him a friend. With him out of the village, Sakura didn't have anyone to talk to. Ino is hanging with her team and Tenten with her. She doesn't involve much with Hinata, so Naruto would be the only one left to talk to. "Oh well, guess I'll just want him to come back. I have to go for the hospital, Tsunade-sama" – Said Sakura before she left the office. Shizune and Tsunade were worried for a second about Sakura, but they all knew she wasn't infatuated with Naruto in that way. Tsunade was about to dismiss Shizune when a knock on the door was heard.

"Greetings Tsunade-sama; I have an appointment with you over a position at the hospital, my name is Kira" – Present Kira to which Tsunade nodded before greeting said person. She now remembered that this was the name Naruto mentioned on his latter a while ago. "Right Kira, I remember you now. Tell me about your experience in the medic field" – Said Tsunade to which Kira nodded and began explaining. She initiated telling about what drove her to train as a medic-nin and how much she worshipped said position. After that, she explained how she ended up becoming a hunter-nin and how she became the physicist responsible for taking care of their mental health. Tsunade was impressed with said person's curriculum and liked her. "Kira-san, I'm sure you'll do fine at the hospital, you start tomorrow morning. Now I understand you came across Uzumaki Naruto, haven't you?" – Asked Tsunade to which said girl just nodded.

"Yes, he was the last person I examined before I returned here. I actually appreciated what he did for me and I also appreciate the position Hokage-sama" – Said Kira to which Tsunade nodded, but asked about the blond a little bit. "Naruto's physical condition is one hundred percent and the job doesn't seem to affect him much. His skills as a hunter-nin are pretty good, from his file and how he managed to enter the place we met almost undetected. In fact, if I didn't know much, he would pass right in front of me and I wouldn't know he was even there in the first place" – Said Kira to which the hokage noted and smiled. "I guess you made quite an impression on him. Although you're not the first one he helped, he only does that to precious people. Tell me what happened between you two out there?" – Asked the Hokage with most innocence, but she ended up cornering Kira a little bit.

"Ah…I'm not in liberty to discuss this type of things Hokage-sama" – Stated Kira, although highly afraid of telling something that the Hokage didn't want to hear. Tsunade for her part got her answer so she didn't press the matter further. Sometimes, she acted more like a family to Naruto than his hokage, so to her seeing that Kira's 'relations' with the blond, did send her on edge a little bit. Nonetheless, his personal life was his to choose as he sees fit. Also, this Kira person didn't seem someone who would like to date Naruto anytime soon, even though they did have sex. It was just a one-night stand after all.

* * *

**---With Naruto---**

"**Fuuton Shippuu no Hageshii **(Wind Release: Furious Hurricane Jutsu)"**. **

In seconds, the wind that gathered around Naruto transformed into a hurricane and was growing immensely. After Naruto tried his wind restriction training, he decided to use some of Kyuubi's chakra to increase the strength of his fuuton techniques. Upon using it with his furious wind technique, he found that the technique was double in strength and destruction, thus changing the name from a simple wind to hurricane. **"I was right after all. With my chakra and your techniques, the power of it grows tenfold"** – Said Kyuubi as with Naruto's eyes, he saw what remained of the river. _Yes, however this technique requires a lot of control over mine and your chakra at the same time. It's tough as hell. I can't use this in battle quite yet_ – Said Naruto to which the fox nodded. **"Don't worry, though. We'll be practicing this technique until you manage to do it without much concentration. Now I believe you've got a new victim to hunt" **– Said Kyuubi, remembering the blond of his task as a hunter-nin.

Naruto grabbed his clothes, strapped the sword holster on his back and set foot on the trees, in order to reach his destination. Upon reaching, he would find a place to stay and scout the area. Along the way, Naruto found some people travelling down on the ground and he even managed to find some familiar faces. Shikamaru, Ino and Chouji were walking around on what seemed to be a mission. Luckily for him, though, he wasn't spotted. Although he wanted nothing more to just talk to them, he knew that wasn't a possibility right now. No one was supposed to know about his hunter-nin position, since all of them were told about his fake mission to find Jiraya's spy network. Looking forward once again, he changed subjects and maintained his course of action. Unbeknownst to him, though, Shikamaru knew his real mission and also knew his position. _You changed Naruto; I almost didn't notice you're there. I wonder how you are doing my friend – _thought Shikamaru as he joined his team once again.

"Why you stopped Shikamaru?" – Asked Ino to which Shikamaru shrugged saying that he thought they were being followed. Back to Naruto, he was already half way through. The man's position was on a small town, but Naruto knew it because it was that city where Jiraya taught him some knowledge of genjutsu.

* * *

**---In Konoha---**

Inside Tsunade's office, was Kurenai and Kakashi brought a report on Konoha's supposed rat. The two jounins were in charge of investigating about a possibility of a rat amongst them. So far, Kakashi had some suspicions as to who could it be, but he wasn't entirely sure. He and Kurenai were given access to the mission's archive in order to see how aware was their enemies of Konoha's activities. Kurenai managed to link something with Ne's (Danzou's secret organization) activities; however she found any one hundred percent reliable lead to Danzou, so she thought better than push it forward. Tsunade also had news from Jiraya who had information from his spy network about someone leaking important information of Konoha to foreigners, but he couldn't identify what that information was or who was the rat.

"Tsunade-sama, so far neither of us managed to find any reliable lead to our rat. Kurenai here found some links to Danzou's organization, but other than that, we haven't found anything worthy of mentioning" – Reported Kakashi to which Tsunade nodded and thought for a while. "I have my suspicions about Danzou, but I can't put Anbu to spy on him without having at least a valuable clue of his involvement" – Stated Tsunade. Kurenai thought for a while and offered an idea. "Tsunade-sama, seeing that the rat's target is Akatsuki, we have to check Naruto's documents and his mission reports. Of course, they have to know about our defenses, but also they are to follow Naruto's movements all the time. Also, since Naruto didn't do any B to A ranked missions, the below ranked ones are accessible to everyone that has a chunnin rank or above. We could check those and also see who checked said documents in the last three years" – Explained Kurenai, earning thinking pose from Kakashi and Tsunade.

"I doubt Danzou would be looking into C ranked mission reports, Kurenai. Either way, it's good to check those as well. Maybe, this is Danzou's thinking. No one would be suspicious of a person of his status checking on C ranked mission reports and informing Akatsuki on Naruto's whereabouts" – Ordered Tsunade, before Kakashi and Kurenai bowed and left for the door. "Seems like Danzou is once again acting on the shadows"

* * *

**---With Naruto---**

After arriving at the designated city, Naruto checked in the hotel and left some stuff inside his room. After that, he left to scout the city for his next victim. Sageki's dressing was outrageous, not to mention the man's stupid haircut. He was unmistakable, so either he was plain stupid and lucky to escape the hunter-nins or he killed them all. In any case, Naruto had to find him and see for himself what this man was all about. After some time of walking around, he found his target. He was seating inside a dango restaurant and talking to the waitress. Naruto was using a henge so by look alone, was impossible to determine if he was a hunter-nin or not. Also, since the man was far, he couldn't sense Naruto's chakra. However, the man was a jounin and his instincts far surpassed the need to feel or see someone to know that he was being followed.

However, Naruto's mission wasn't to spy on him, so he returned to his hotel and grabbed his uniform and sword. Getting back, he made his figure visible to his enemy who in turn only laughed at yet another hunter to dispose of. "Hideashi Sageki, from the crimes against Konoha, you are to be eliminated" – Said Naruto but the man only smiled. "Eliminated? I thought you offered, first, the option of me coming back willingly and my sentence would be reduced" – Said Sageki, before seeing Naruto grabbing his sword. "I just presumed you already heard this and declined, so I didn't feel the need to add that to my speech. I thought you wouldn't mind, though. But guess I was wrong, well if you really wanted to come back, you should've said so" – Said Naruto as he saw Sageki pointing to a direction for the hunter-nin to follow. Naruto obliged and followed him. Although the man was a criminal, I guess he wasn't a complete lunatic.

When both warriors stopped, Naruto began to scan his surroundings. "I thought I was clear with the last hunter-nin who thought that he could take me on a fight. I wanted to be left alone" – Said Sageki to which Naruto nodded. "Sorry, it's my job. It's nothing personal. You understand that right" – Asked Naruto, earning a laugh from the man who was surprised that this hunter-nin wasn't saying things like crimes against Konoha or being a threat to the village. "Well, it seems that you are different than the others. Now, let's see if your fighting is better than all of those who came trying to kill me" – Said Sageki as he dropped into an instance. **"Naruto, this man is dangerous. I can feel the electricity being gathered around his body"**- Said Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded and became ready to use fuuton ninjutsu to counterattack.

True to Kyuubi's warnings, Sageki made some hand seals and screamed **Raiton Gian **(Lightning Release: False Darkness Jutsu). Immediately, a huge lightning bolt charged Naruto who didn't have other option besides dodging and throwing some kunais at the target. With a kunai of his own Sageki was able to deflect all the incoming kunais and once again sent a lightning bolt attack at Naruto. The blond dodged yet again and approached Sageki with his sword for close contact fighting. Naruto figured that his choice of jutsus, Sageki was a long range fighter, but he was wrong. However, Sageki proved to be just as efficient with his taijutsu, since he was evading all of Naruto's sword attacks and still was able to fight back. **"It seems he is just as effective in close-ranged. So we just have to switch to long range, right."** – Said Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded and jumped backwards while making some hand seals. **"Fuuton Daitoppa** (Wind Release: Great Breakthrough Jutsu)". The huge gust of wind appeared out of nowhere and sent Sageki flying. Not wanting to let the man rest, Naruto channeled some of Kyuubi's chakra and made some hand seals. **Katon Zukokku (**Fire Release: Head Mincing Pain Jutsu). Sageki looked at the ever growing fire and used a substitution jutsu, barely escaping the incoming fire.

However, luckily to Naruto, the man's arm was burned from not escaping in time. "You're good, I tell you that. Quite interesting sequence of jutsus you got there" – Said Sageki as he fell into his stance. "I appreciate the complement. However, we are far from over, so excuse me if I don't feel like talking" – Said Naruto as he once again made some hand seals for **Katon Karyuu Endan **(Fire Release: Fire Dragon Missile Jutsu). After Naruto exhaled the huge fire missile, Sageki snarled and made some quick hand seals for **Raiton Denkousekisho **(Lightning Release: Lightning Barrier Jutsu).

Meanwhile, big white haired man was passing by and saw huge chakra being used nearby. Speeding around the town, he got to the battlefield only to see a Hunter-nin from Konoha doing some hand seals and exhaling a huge fire missile and his opponent using what appeared to be a barrier made of lightning to protect himself from the fire attack. He knew Naruto was a hunter-nin, but seeing that the man made a katon ninjutsu, he knew Naruto wasn't the man. However, he remembered the blond saying that Kyuubi had a fire affinity. Suddenly, both opponents began making hand seals at the same time and finishing at the exact same time.

**Raiton Rakurai no Jutsu **(Lightning Release: Thunderbolt Jutsu)

**Fuuton Kaze no Yaiba **(Wind Release: Wind Sword Jutsu)

Just as the two elements were about to shock with each other, both opponents were surprised that they passed and now as the sword charged Sageki, the thunderbolt charged against Naruto. Focusing as much of Kyuubi's chakra as he could manage, Naruto evaded the thunderbolt, but his arms suffered the worst, as the electric current scratched his skin which was enough to send enough electricity inside Naruto's body to make him scream in agony. Sageki, though, wasn't lucky and the wind sword hit him right in the chest, thus making a deep and fatal cut. The man was dead before he hit the floor.

Naruto, though, was still suffering the power of the attack. "**Calm down Naruto, I'm eliminating the current from the body, hold still for a second"** – Shouted Kyuubi as he was using his chakra to cure Naruto's organs. _Easy for you to say, you damn fox. Ahhhh! _– Screamed Naruto inside his mind and outside, he was grinding his teeth. His mask was shattered and his face was visible so Jiraya was able to see his student and rushed to his side immediately. "Naruto, are you okay?" – Asked Jiraya while tending to the blond's arms. Naruto, although wasn't concerned to seeing his teacher. "Where is my mask? No one can know where I am?" – Said Naruto while still grinding his teeth. "Don't worry about that, I'll take care of you" – Said Jiraya as he dressed Naruto with a coat and placed the coat's hoot thus covering his face.

The blond got up almost barely and went to check on Sageki. Naruto was thanking Kami that his attack landed simply because he would be dead otherwise. Taking his sword, Naruto cut Sageki's head and then, he burned the man's body, before locking the man's head inside a scroll. While this was happening, Jiraya was finding hard to believe that Naruto of all people was so brutally efficient on the job. Jiraya knew some hunter-nins, but the pervert knew how they behaved. Naruto, though, was one hundred percent different than all of them. However, seeing Naruto forgetting about being almost shocked to death and deal with what he had to do was unnerving. Naruto for his part summoned Gamakichi and asked him to take the scroll to the hunter-nin commander to which the toad nodded and vanished. "What are you doing here Jiraya?" – Asked the blond while he kneeled on the ground and holds his damaged arm a little bit. "Would you believe if I said that I was just passing by; I see you're taking the hunter-nin job seriously, Naruto" – Stated Jiraya to which Naruto nodded and looked at his shattered mask.

"Guess, I should avoid raiton users for now. Being on the receiving end of a raiton jutsu, hurts like a bitch and now I had to ask for a new mask for the commander. Are you staying longer or just passing by?" – Said Naruto as he got up and adjusted the hood so no one would know he was there. "I was just passing through. I'm heading to River Country to meet one of my spies. He contacted me and said he held some valuable information for me. Are you okay on your own?" – Asked Jiraya to which Naruto nodded. "I can take care of myself, thanks. I've been taking care of myself for a while now, I guess I can manage" – Said Naruto as he grabbed the scroll Gamakichi returned and grabbed his new mask and money of the hunt.

After Naruto put his new mask, he looked at Jiraya as in trying to find something to say to the man. However, he didn't have any. In fact, the blond couldn't think of a reason to keep talking to the pervert. Jiraya for his part eyed Naruto warily and wondered why he was so uncomfortable, when suddenly Naruto turned and said goodbye to the man before vanishing and leaving Jiraya alone to wonder. The sannin was flabbergasted by the blond's choice of action and still wondered why the hell Naruto was avoiding him. He knew of Naruto's fear that Akatsuki would use others to get to him, but no one would go after the sannin, so the blond didn't need to worry about that.

Nevertheless, Naruto was even stronger than before if what Jiraya witnessed. Using two affinities would grant someone the rank of jounin in Konoha and seeing Naruto beating what appeared to be an ex-jounin, the sannin didn't doubt the blond was training profusely. The pervert was now anxious to see what the blond came up with on his own. He could have finally completed the rasengan, if Kakashi's statement was precise.

Back with Naruto, he entered the shower in order to clean the wound made by the lightning attack. At the moment, he appreciated having Kyuubi with him to cure him from the excruciating pain seconds after the attack. For a minute, there, all Naruto could feel was pain and he wondered how could he protect himself in case of similar attacks in the future. **"In case you forgot about my idea, we considered creating a new technique called Fuuton Kazetoku **(Wind Release: Wind Shield Jutsu). **It would definitely protect you from raiton attacks" – **Said Kyuubi as Naruto looked at the water coming from the shower in wonder.

"I guess I have no choice, then. Until I'm able to create this new technique, it's safe that I avoid fighting more missing-nins. Up to now, all the jutsus that we trained for were exclusively offensive ones. We need to focus now on defensive ones, do you perhaps have one defensive katon to teach me" – Asked Naruto to which Kyuubi nodded, but there was a catch. "**I do, actually. However, is a demonic jutsu and could only be used with my chakra. It's called 'Katon Kekkai Hidokuro no Tate' **(Fire Barrier – Fire Skull Shield Jutsu). **It's pretty easy to make, but extremely taxing chakra wise. After making the needed hand seals, you'd slam both hands on the ground and release the molded chakra"** – Explained Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded and asked to be taught.

"**Rest for a while, tomorrow we'll begin both jutsus"** – Said Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded and got out of the bathroom, before going to bed and rest for the day. Even if the pain subsided, Naruto's body was far from healed, so Kyuubi needed Naruto to sleep, so he could fully heal his body and protect his inner organs from the shock inside his body.

* * *

**---Next day---**

When the sunlight illuminated Naruto's bedroom, the blond wondered how much time he slept, seeing that when he went to bed, the sun was just about to se the previous day. When he got up, though, he was expecting to feel at least the last bits of pain, however the pain was completely gone, and it was like the pain never existed. "**You can thank me for that. The reason you slept so much was because I was using my regeneration chakra to heal all your body and organs. Now, you are as good as new" **– Said Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded and dressed up.

"Okay, then. Let's train a little bit" – Said Naruto as he placed his mask on and left the hotel only to meet with Jiraya waiting for him. "Well hello there hunter-san, I was wondering when you would be waking up, I need to talk with you for a second" – Said Jiraya to which Naruto sighed and nodded before following Jiraya. As they were walking, Jiraya couldn't help but notice that Naruto managed to increase his muscles while training and he wondered what influenced his body to grow like this. When they stopped, Jiraya turned to become face to face (well mask) with Naruto. "Ok, Jiraya, what is that you wanted to speak with me?" – Asked Naruto not at all wanting to prolong this conversation than it needed to be.

"Show some respect brat, no t only I outrank you, but also I'm older than you" – Shouted Jiraya to which Naruto shrugged it off. "If all you wanted to say was that, there wasn't any need of even having this conversation, what is it?" – Asked Naruto once again, enforcing more his irritation in the end. "Fine, first of all, I'm curious as to why are you being so distant towards me? I was expecting a much warmer reception coming from you" – Questioned Jiraya to which Naruto grinned a bit and stated that Jiraya was expecting to see someone else instead of him. "What would you expect of someone who's wearing a mask? Besides, the one you came to know no longer exists. Next question" – Inquired Naruto, earning a popping vein from Jiraya's forehead, but he chose subjects. "Ok, how did you manage to use katon and fuuton ninjutsu? Those two are opposite forces for a reason" – Asked Jiraya, but only to confirm his suspicions.

"It's simple really. I have fuuton as my element and you know who has katon as his element. Upon using his chakra, I can use Katon ninjutsu" – Explained Naruto, confirming Jiraya's suspicions. "I'm also here to report of the success of the mission so far. As of now, you're travelling across Snow Country to meet one of my spies and said man informed me that he spotted two men with Akatsuki robes wondering around the area which mean that someone is informing them of your whereabouts. As of right now, we have a task force back in Konoha in order to discover this rat and arrest him for good. I was going to tell you to continue with hiding from their traces, but I'm sure you already got the handle" – Reported Jiraya, earning the nod of the hunter-nin.

"I wasn't aware that someone was informing Akatsuki of my whereabouts, but it's good to know that your counter-intelligence also served this purpose. I appreciate your help in all this Jiraya-san and hope that I can train hard enough so that upon encountering my enemies, I'll be strong enough to beat them. For now, though, I'll be training against ex-jounins. Right now, I'm about to add two defensive jutsus to my list" – Said Naruto to which Jiraya was interested and asked if he could tag along. Naruto didn't have a problem, so they went to the clearing that he fought against Sageki.

Once at the clearing, Naruto summoned close to twenty kage bunshins and explained them that Kyuubi would explain his jutsu. When Jiraya questioned his training method, Naruto explained that Kyuubi's conscience is divided among the clones, so that he can explain the jutsu's theory to the clones while gets to attempt his new fuuton ninjutsu. Jiraya was impressed with said method and immediately wondered how much stronger would Naruto be if he used this method on their training trip. Jiraya spent some time with the real one watching how he attempted to create a wind barrier by circulating wind chakra around his body. Surely, the first attempts were futile, but after some time, Naruto was already able to maintain the wind circulating around him.

Now he only had to expand the technique to cover his whole body and his technique was ready to use. True to his wonderings, the next attempt was a success. The wind was surrounding around Naruto's body, fully protecting him for harm. When he looked to the clones, though, his eyes practically left the respective sockets. The technique the clones were attempting seemed to be a barrier that came out of the ground, consisted of numerous burning skeletons. Being a sannin, Jiraya prided himself of knowing all fire techniques that exists in the elemental nations; however this one was new even to him. Naruto looked at the white haired man and explained that was a demonic jutsu created by the fox himself.

"I was starting to wonder if I was going senile for a moment, there. So, this is Kyuubi's attack, huh?" – Asked Jiraya as he was studying the fire barrier in front of him and touched one of the skeletons with his finger, but yanked it soon after, thus avoiding a burned hand. "**Tell the pervert, the technique's temperature is beyond what humans can stand and should he landed his whole hand, he wouldn't be faster enough to save his hand" – **Said Kyuubi to which Naruto acknowledged and passed on the information.

After Naruto dismissed the clones, the technique's information returned to him and then he turned to Jiraya who was smiling at the blond, even though the pervert knew Naruto was a changed man. "I'm surprised at your growth. Truth be told, I didn't expect you to reach this level so quickly. I think I'm going now, but bear in mind that as of now, Akatsuki are way out of your league. Keep training and we'll talk more in the future, perhaps when I see that you matched Orochimaru's henchmen Kabuto's level, you should, then, be able to take on a Akatsuki member, albeit the weakest of them all. Be safe Naruto and don't forget to use the toads in case you need help. Use them to call me if needed be and I'll come to help you" – Said Jiraya before leaving towards his destination.

Naruto for his part watched the man leave and nodded in response. _Guess it will take a while for that to happen Jiraya, but at least I get to fight the B ranked missing-nins for a while and get stronger. Kabuto's level is the same as Kakashi's, so that means I have to be better than Kakashi-sensei. While I know that Kakashi is way stronger than Kabuto, the man is slippery like a snake. _– Thought Naruto as Kyuubi manifested. **"Snakes are bunch of cowards. They wait for you to turn your back so that they can attack. Without the element of surprise, they have nothing. When the time comes and Orochimaru is our enemy, he won't know what hit him"** – Shouted Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded.

_Orochimaru is an S ranked missing-nin, same as Itachi. Sasuke is considered an A ranked. We'll have waited a while before fighting them. However, when the time comes, we'll sure be ready for them –_ Thought Naruto as Kyuubi acknowledged. "**All right, now that the pervert is gone, we can train for real. Summon ten kage bunshins and let's do some sword sparring" **– Ordered Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded and made the peculiar hand seal, before grabbing his sword and attacked his enemies.

* * *

**---With Akatsuki---**

After seeing Hidan and Kakuzu returning without the Kyuubi vessel, Pein was very irritated. He knew Hidan would screw things up, but Kakuzu was the elite of the elite and to see him fail of all people was the exception. The Akatsuki knew of Naruto's mission to meet Jiraya's spy network from a spy they had inside Konoha. However, when they approached his designated spot where he would be, Akatsuki couldn't find trace of the boy.

If Jiraya was with him, chances are that the man is protecting him by covering his tracks like a pro. In that case, Akatsuki couldn't hope to find Naruto anytime soon. Jiraya achieved the rank of sannin for a reason and although Akatsuki could take him with two members, his evasion abilities were top notch. "Hidan, it's most unfortunate that you failed me yet again. I expected this from Hidan, but not from you" – Said Pein to which Hidan snarled at the leader, but Kakuzu maintained his cool. "It seems we arrived late and the jinchuuriki wasn't there anymore. Our sources in Konoha stated that he would reach River Country tomorrow so we will be waiting for him. Even if the sannin Jiraya is helping him, I doubt he could take on two of us" – Said Kakuzu to which Pein nodded and agreed with his assessment.

"Very well, you two should leave right away for River Country. Be wary of Jiraya, though. I wouldn't be surprised if he already knew both your abilities and already knew of a way to counter. Try not to engage him for now, if you manage to take the Kyuubi brat without having to fight him, good. If not, return to the base immediately" – Ordered Pein, before he turned to the other members. Itachi and Kisame, you two are to find the four tailed demon. He is the next seeing that Deidara managed to capture the Sanbi. This meeting is adjourned until I say so. Hidan, Kakuzu; I advise both of you not to fail me anymore. I was lenient this time, but I can't promise to be the next time" – Said Pein before his image vanished.

"Huh, I swear I'm going to kill that arrogant piece of shit" – Shouted Hidan, before Kakuzu reprimanded his partner and began walking away, heading to River Country. Little did they know, though, that a trap awaited them.

* * *

**---With Hana---**

After closing the clinic, Hana and the triplets were walking back to her compound. It was rather boring day with only a few checkups and minor surgeries. In fact, today was just like any other day. The only difference was after her mission with Naruto; the blond occupied her mind all day and the memories varied between seeing him fight and having fantasies about him. It was a good thing Hana managed to hide her sexual behavior from the public, otherwise it would be tough to walk around Konoha. As she was walking, her eyes fixed on a friend of hers that happened to graduate the same year.

"Ohayo Anko-chan? How are you doing these days?" – Asked Hana, gaining the attention of Anko since she turned and faced the inuzuka chunnin. "Hi Hana, I'm fine and you. I heard that you went on a mission with a hunter-nin last week. How was it?" – Asked Anko, earning a suspicious glare from Hana. She remembered the Hokage saying that no one was supposed to know of Naruto's real identity. "It was okay, with the hunter's help, our clan managed to retrieve two of our most prized pups. Sadly, though, the hunted was my uncle, but I was glad to see the hunter-nin beating the hell out of him before giving the lethal blow" – Reported Hana, earning a whistle from Anko who was surprised to see a hunter-nin finally cleaning the bingo book.

"Finally, someone with skills out there; the bingo book was getting quite thick. At least, now that this hunter-nin is cleaning out the missing-nins, not only the book will diminish, but it will serve as a lesson for the ones who are planning on escaping in the future" – Said Anko to which Hana nodded and silently smiled as they were talking about Naruto. "I wonder, though, if you know who this guy is? I've only heard rumors of his appearance and all, but wanted to know who he is" – Asked Anko, though lying to Hana, since she knew it was Naruto, simply because, of all the hunter-nins she knew, only he had the balls to face ex-jounins and managing to deliver a killing blow.

Also she was teasing Hana, simply because Anko talked with Kurenai who in turn explained that Hana already knew of Naruto, but she wasn't supposed to tell anyone. Hana for her part cursed Anko and wondered if that smile on her face was an indication that she was tricking Hana into telling a secret. "I wonder if that smile on your face is any indication that you're only teasing me Anko-chan? I wonder if you by chance, already know who the hunter-nin is and is just playing with me?" – Said Hana to which Anko just scowled at the girl for ruining all the fun of things. "So you already know who he is as well. It's not hard to figure out since the rumor all said he is blond, so apart from Tsunade-sama, the only one with blond hair could only be him" – Said Hana to which Anko nodded.

"I happen to wonder what happened in that mission between you and him, huh Hana-chan? If I didn't know any better, it seems you are quite fond of speaking about him. As to why I wonder?" – Asked Anko, now cornering the Inuzuka woman. "I happen to know for a fact, that his body is to dream for and I happen to sometimes imagine how he would behave in 'bed'? " – Asked Anko, innocently, but with a sexual remark. However, her plan was a success when she saw Hana showing light shades of pink on her cheeks. "Blushing aren't we? I guess you already imagined him like that, haven't you Hana-chan?" – Teased Anko as she used her finger and caressed Hana's chin a little bit.

* * *

**---With Naruto---**

After settling down a bit, Naruto picked his bingo book and crossed Sageki's face. Considering his initial fright of fighting jounin level ninjas, he already managed to beat two jounins and he knew some of the rest were just recently promoted jounins and others were given the rank based on either chakra capacity or specific technique. **"Yes, I doubt the little Uchiha would be considered 'A' ranked without his doujutsu. Unlucky for him, though, he won't be able to see our movements, because of the mask"** – Said Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded.

Turning the page, Naruto was surprised by seeing this man yet again. It was the third time Naruto had to face the man and frankly, the blond was getting tired of facing this man. _"It's like he never learn his lesson. Well, I guess I'll just have to kill him, then_ – Thought Naruto as he eyed the picture of the one who told him of Kyuubi's existence.

"Touji Mizuki, we meet yet again"


	8. Finding the rat

**Chapter 8 – ****Finding the rat**

After seeing Mizuke's face in the bingo book, Naruto closed it and got up. The man was stupid enough to remain within Fire Country's territory, even though he tried escaping two times already. Surprisingly enough, Mizuki was considered a jounin level ninja, even if he was a chunnin at the time he betrayed Konoha. "**Correct if I'm wrong, but this Mizuki wasn't the guy who experimented on Orochimaru's potion, thus losing the ability to manipulate chakra" **Said Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded. _Yes, you're right. However, we don't know what happened to him after that time. Maybe, someone healed the effects or something_.

The blond looked around a while and saw that he was positioned in a clear place, thus being able to train some more, before initiating his hunt on Mizuki. After all, it wouldn't be fair to appear before the man and not see the look on pure horror on his face one he figures out Naruto, once more, stopped him with a superior technique. Summoning a group of kage bunshins, Naruto took his sword and began fighting against his clones.

* * *

**===With Jiraya===**

The pervert was seen drinking some sake and eating some dango. Even though it was clouded today, the pervert was smiling which meant that today would be interesting to say the least. Today would be the time where his counter-intelligence mission will be responsible for taking out two Akatsuki members altogether. Jiraya presumed that the ones that were located near Snow Country, would once again search for Naruto in River Country, since the pervert happened to inform Konoha of his fake whereabouts just so that Hidan and Kakuzu comes and fall right into the trap carefully elaborated by both Jiraya and the Toads.

Jiraya was so trapped inside his own wonderings that he failed to see that the waitress came asking him if he wanted anything more, thus waking the man from his daydreaming. "Well, yes my dear, I was hoping to invite a beautiful woman like you for some dinner later tonight" whispered Jiraya closely to the girl's ears, making the young girl blush from the remark so much, that she used a napkin she was holding and covered her face in order to hide her red face, before rushing back to the kitchen. Jiraya laughed out loud about the girl's antics and immediately an idea popped inside his mind as to an update to his new book.

Some people called him a bloody pervert or the entire woman population. However, Jiraya either didn't care of became amused by receiving said nickname. Actually, Jiraya's peeping activity served two purposes. One was filling his old mind with dirty ideas and passing them to his books, thus increasing his economy and the other was important Intel. Come to speak of it, some of Jiraya's spies happen to be disguised hookers. According to the pervert, a hooker has the ability of knowing everything from a man just by swinging her hips in a sexual manner and teasing men. Also, since all of them were either drunk or drugged, opening their mouth to speak wasn't a problem.

Getting up, he left money on the table and scream to let the waitress know where the money was. Right now, he needed to go visit his spy a few blocks from his position and ask what information the man has for him. Walking around, Jiraya's mind wondered back to his first blond student and the repercussions that transformed Naruto into one of the most efficient hunter-nins to ever use the mask. Jiraya always knew that the hunter-nin position were dedicated to not so experienced shinobi who were better off hunting some missing-nins and trying to help Konoha the best way they could, which wasn't much in the end, since the bingo book was getting thicker and the hunter-nins were being killed one by one.

Actually, the only one good enough to be considered the elite, was the now hunter-nin commander Uzuki Gaeshi. However, where Orochimaru is insane, Gaeshi is vicious. In fact, Jiraya, once, remembered witnessing the man doing his job once. But instead of a swift kill, Gaeshi pretty much mutilated every part of the enemy's body, before remembering to burn the corpse. While Naruto's kill isn't like Gaeshi's, Jiraya was wondering about what would be like for Naruto in the future. Being a hunter-nin meant to kill and kill more. The blond wouldn't be doing anything different for quite a while and the thought of seeing a bloodthirsty Naruto walking around Konoha was unnerving to say the least.

Even though Jiraya felt Naruto's change in behavior, the pervert couldn't help but smile at the same impatience and disrespect for Jiraya's position which meant that even after a high number of kills, Naruto still kept a presumably normal behavior. Now as to the boy's skills growing leaps and bounds, Jiraya wondered about his method of training. Using Kyuubi's chakra to perform katon ninjutsu was brilliant and Jiraya was suspicious that the demon came up with this idea. Also, Naruto's muscle structure pretty much doubled, giving him a bigger and stronger appearance, perhaps even bigger than Kakashi, though that didn't mean Naruto could beat the copy-cat ninja. Nevertheless, the blond now possessed a threatening appearance to his enemies.

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

Holding his sword horizontally, Naruto managed to defend himself from a sword attack from one of the clones, before using his strong legs and landing a swift kick right at the clone's chest, thus dispelling him instantly. After that, he saw the rest of the five bunshins approaching with their swords, Naruto placed his sword on the grass and made some hand seals. "**Fuuton Arashi no Hageshii (**Wind Release: Furious Hurricane Jutsu)" Instantly, all five clones went flying as the hurricane grew in size. After the technique ended, Naruto kneeled on the ground, snarling. _Damn it, it's still hard to do this technique. _

"**In time, you'll learn it" **Said Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded and got up watching the view around him. Normally, he would look at large buildings, wide green areas and people surrounding the streets. Now, all he saw was an open area and a big lake to his left. He sat down for a while and watched the river as a few wild animals appeared to drink some water from the river. The animals, though, looked at him and Naruto laughed while wondering if they were bothered about him staying there. It was actually quite peaceful to just hang out for a while. Sometimes, taking a break from things helped clear the mind. Taking off his clothes, but not the mask, Naruto jumped to the lake and just relaxed for a while. It wouldn't do any good for him to overstrain his body all the time.

* * *

**===With Jiraya===**

Entering what seemed to be a damaged cottage, Jiraya studied the place for a while. He knew for a fact that his contacts would never meet him in a common place. He didn't have to wait, though, as a familiar voice, at least to him, greeted the pervert. "It's nice to see you Jiraya-san. You look the same as you did ten years ago" – Said the man, though, only the shadow was visible. Jiraya knew better that this man wouldn't show more than this, so he shrugged it off and greeted the man back. This man rarely even contacted the pervert and when he received the letter, Jiraya was surprised to say the least. "So, what do you call me for? You rarely meddle with Shinobi business, let alone want to talk to someone about it" – Said Jiraya to which the shadow smiled and began to explain.

"You're quite right Jiraya; shinobis were the ones who killed my family, so dislike them to say the least. The reason I called you, though, was concerning that one who holds the kyuubi inside of him" – Said the shadow, earning a serious look from Jiraya. Naruto, as of a few months ago, became a secret subject and any info regarding him had to remain a secret. Although, Jiraya was surprised since neither of his contacts ever mentioned Naruto's name, let along told him something about the blond that they knew.

The shadow wasn't waiting for an authorization from Jiraya to start speaking so he spoke. "As you know, the group called Akatsuki is hunting the tailed beasts, but their purpose it's still unknown until now" – Said the shadow, just waiting for the information to sink in Jiraya's mind and he wide his eyes in surprise at this important info. So far, Akatsuki's goals were hidden from everyone. Collecting the tailed beasts would grand a lot of power, but the purpose for this power was unknown. "Well, I guess you'll tell me or should I read the scroll's contents" – Asked Jiraya as the man nodded and left, leaving the scroll on top of a table.

As Jiraya unrolled it, he began reading the document. So far, the document contained all data regarding Akatsuki and their recent movements, the demons they already captured, their members and abilities. Jiraya was reading the scroll with a frown, since he already knew most of the scroll and the info he didn't know wasn't even close to what the man was talking about. However, when Jiraya looked at the last paragraph, he flinched.

'_By capturing the tailed beasts, Akatsuki would have the power to level the hidden villages. By using the power of the bijuus, Akatsuki will have the power to create war and then offer their services to end the war, thus weakening the power and economic resources of the five hidden villages. __Also is that Kyuubi is the key. Even if they manage to capture eight of the nine bijuus, only by capturing the kyuubi as well, will they have access to the power of the tailed beasts'_

After reading it, Jiraya was paled. First of all, he learned that Akatsuki's goal is to take over the world by creating wars and gaining profit from them. The news about the kyuubi being the key, although surprised him, wasn't unexpected. Kyuubi is the strongest of them all, but what concerned him was if Akatsuki decides to go all out against Naruto once they captured the eight others. Naruto is already protected by my counter-intelligence, so I'd just have to watch out for the ones they didn't capture and hope to protect him or her as well from Akatsuki's hands.

Looking at the sun, Jiraya smiled since it was time for this plan to initiate. Jumping towards the nearest set of trees, Jiraya rushed to the place where he would meet his prays and hope that his plan worked. The place was highly surrounded by tall trees, so the enemy wouldn't be able to suspect anything. After arriving, Jiraya summoned what appeared to be two small toads wearing a small cape to surround their tiny bodies, thus leaving the head out.

"Is it time already Jiraya-chan?" – Asked the male toad to which Jiraya nodded. "Yes, it is Fugasaku-sama. The two are approaching this are in less than five minutes. Let's proceed with the plan" – Said Jiraya to which the little toad nodded and began making hand seals for another summoning ritual.

A little far from the place and completely oblivious to a trap uh ahead, Kakuzu and Hidan were walking calmly towards their destination. According to their informant in Konoha, Naruto would be located a few miles from where they were right now, so they came in order to capture the nine tailed fox inside of him. Hidan was complaining like usual and Kakuzu was mumbling threatening words to his so called 'immortal' partner. It was no secret that Kakuzu already tried to kill Hidan, only for said man to explain time and time again that he can't die. It was unnerving to say the least for the big guy who happened to use this type of intimidation and finding someone he can't kill no matter how much he tried.

"Oh Kakuzu, how long will it takes to reach the place, I can't take why you bother walking when we could reach there faster" – Complained Hidan, earning once again, mumbles from Kakuzu, who in turn responded with his grave and deep voice. "We need to be approach with cautious Hidan, the toad sannin Jiraya maybe with the jinchuuriki" – Explained Hidan, before seeing Hidan snarled and looked around.

Kakuzu, however, was suspicious of perhaps walking into a trap. The man happened to kill more person than mostly anyone and he wouldn't survive this long if his senses didn't improve with experience. Once the two entered in a clearing, the ground, suddenly, turned to mud, but they jumped away in time. After the swamp vanished, Jiraya entered calmly and faced his foes. "Oh is nice seeing you, Hidan, Kakuzu. I presume you're here for the jinchuuriki?" – Asked Jiraya, not bothering to call Naruto by his name.

Just when Hidan and Kakuzu moved to flee, both of them faced two giant toads Gambunta and Gamaken. "You aren't going nowhere from here. It's time that both of your existence in this world ends" – Said Jiraya, before charging to attack Kakuzu, since Jiraya knew that man was the strongest of the two. Jiraya knew of their abilities. Hidan prayed for Dark Lord Jashin and granted immortality in return; also he has a jutsu that could inflict pain on others by causing on himself. Kakuzu has five hearts and in order to kill him, Jiraya had to kill the man five times. Other than that, though, the information about him being able to use all forms of elemental manipulation. As to Hidan, the only way to kill him was to take off his head.

Seeing the imminent attack, Kakuzu and Hidan scattered and fell into fighting positions. "Your blood will be ultimate offer to Lord Jashin" – Said Hidan before he took his scythe and charged against Jiraya, who in turn smiled and only waited until a tongue suddenly enveloped Hidan and immobilized him. "Gamabunta, hold him still for a moment. I'll deal with the other one and then I'll take him" – Shouted Jiraya, gaining a nod from the toad. Kakuzu snarled at his incompetent partner and removed his Akatsuki cloak. It wouldn't do any good to fight only with one element after all. Jiraya was waiting for the man to be ready but he wasn't expecting to see suddenly, five enemies to deal with. He would have to be better informed in the future. "I knew you have five hearts, Kakuzu, but I never expected you to be able to split those hearts in these beings" – Said Jiraya to which Kakuzu laughed and said that Jiraya's heart would be a fine addiction to his collection, not to mention that the man's bounty was superior to a kage.

"You won't beat me Jiraya of the sannin. You are a sannin, but I beat you in terms of experience" – Said Kakuzu, earning a look in wonder from Jiraya. Hearing someone having more experience than a sannin was strange to say the least. Jiraya wasn't thrilled to say he was in his fifties, but Kakuzu, although had a strange appearance, wasn't older than him by any terms. Upon asking about his age, though, Jiraya was shocked to say the least. According to Kakuzu, he was the one who beat Shodaime Hokage. Jiraya didn't think that was possible. "The Shodai died more than 100 years ago, how you can be alive thus far?" – Asked Jiraya to which Kakuzu laughed, but didn't respond with words, but with hand seals. **"Raiton Gian **(Lightning Release: False Darkness Jutsu)" – Said Kakuzu as one of the masks opened his mouth and exhaled the thunderbolt, obliging Jiraya to jump and make hand seals for **Doton Yomi Numa **(Earth Release: Swamp of the Underworld Jutsu) and slam his hand on the ground. The vast area swamp was suddenly created and Kakuzu jumped out of the way, along with three of the masks. However, the one that used the lightning attack was trapped and Jiraya threw a simple kunai at the mask, thus shattering it. He didn't know if hitting the mask would do the trick.

But once he saw Kakuzu holding his chest in pain, Jiraya knew how to destroy the hearts. Meanwhile, Hidan was battling Gamabunta's tongue to get loose, but to no avail. After trying for a bit, he snarled at the damn toad and cursed the toad's existence. All he could do in the end was to watch the fight and hope that Kakuzu manages to beat Jiraya. Back to the fight, Kakuzu stopped feeling the pain and made some hand seals. Immediately, two of the masks joined and opened their mouths at the same time, causing Jiraya to panic. He felt both katon and fuuton level chakra coming out of them and prepared for the worse. Mixing them both was devastating to say the least and he didn't know anything that could stop the damn attack. So, he used a doton technique and went underground, while the joint technique leveled and burned the entire field.

After the smoke dissipated, Kakuzu looked around, but no signs of Jiraya whatsoever. It was when he heard someone screaming **Doton Shinjuu Zanshu no Jutsu **(Earth Release: Double Suicide Decapitation Jutsu) that Kakuzu realized his mistake. Jiraya, by this time, used another kunai and slashed both fire and wind masks, taking two of Kakuzu's hearts, earning yet another grasp at the chest in pain from Kakuzu, who in turn, landed on the ground, doubling in pain from losing two hearts almost the same time. Jiraya, though, didn't wait for him to get over the pain and charged him in straight taijutsu for a while. Kakuzu saw Jiraya approaching and dodged the incoming punch as well as the succeeding roundhouse kick. By this time, he ignored the pain and engaged Jiraya in taijutsu. The fight was matched pretty nicely, where Jiraya punched Kakuzu on the shoulder, Kakuzu used the momentum and flipped his body, thus gaining speed in his kick straight at Jiraya's chest, thus sending him flying, before making hand seals and his second mask sprang to life. **Suiton Suiryuudan no Jutsu **(Water Release: Water Dragon Jutsu).

Seeing the incoming dragon approaching, Jiraya, while in midair, made some hand seals for **Doton Doryuuheki **(Earth Release: Mud Barrier Jutsu) and exhaled a thin layer of mud on the ground just as he was about to land, while seizing the approach of the dragon and waiting for the wall to rise and protect him from the damage, which occurred just milliseconds away for the dragon to hit, thus sending water all over the field. _His taijutsu is even better than mine, impressive. Ninjutsu is excellent, but what about genjutsu? Let's find out_.

Behind the wall, Jiraya initiated some hand seals and molded his chakra in ways of reaching Kakuzu's chakra system. When he found it, his hand finished on the ram seal and Kakuzu now found himself inside a room that happens to expel what appeared to be an acid substance towards him, thus burning him alive. At first, Kakuzu screamed in agony, since his senses were being cheated into believing that the acid was burning all his skin. However, Kakuzu noticed something strange, since he was, firstly, battling Jiraya in a plain field and now he was inside a room, burning alive. Snarling at his lack of ability in detecting genjutsu, Kakuzu stopped the flow of chakra and dispelled the genjutsu, before clutching his chest yet again. Looking for Jiraya, he found the man slicing yet another mask while he was busy dispelling the genjutsu.

Kakuzu was pissed to say the least. One man, no matter how strong he was, couldn't destroy four of Kakuzu's hearts alone. Kakuzu remembered the Akatsuki's leader ordering them not to engage Jiraya and now he knew why, since Jiraya was a formidable opponent. He looked at Hidan who in turn, stopped struggling against the toad's tongue and stood there watching the fight, not able to do anything. "Four of the hearts are now destroyed, leaving me only your real one to deal with. Now, from what I saw of your counterparts, each mask represented a ninjutsu element. So, seeing that I eliminated raiton, fuuton, suiton and katon, I believe there is only your doton ability to deal with" – Said Jiraya as he extended his hands and focused on rotation.

Kakuzu was prepared to dodge any ninjutsu Jiraya would use, but when he saw the legendary rasengan forming on the man's hand, Kakuzu became worried. He remembered hearing about the Yondaime's technique, but he never got to see one, nor its effects. Once finished to charge, Jiraya charged against Kakuzu with speeds that were hard to follow. Kakuzu was desperate now and immediately, used his hair inside him and switched to long distance fighting, thus hindering Jiraya's advance. However, instead of frowning, Jiraya was smiling, which once again set Kakuzu on edge. Suddenly, he felt what appeared like a power drill against his back, practically ripping his body apart. Upon looking, he was astonished to see Jiraya there pushing the rasengan forward, thus damaging his body even more. After the hit, Kakuzu was sent flying together with the blast and both collided with a big rock. The rasengan was doing its job, though, destroying Kakuzu's body. When Jiraya arrived to see, he spotted the body and saw that he was dead.

Quickly taking a scroll, Jiraya placed what was left of Hidan's body inside it and turned to see Hidan who was by now, snarling in fear after seeing someone killing Kakuzu. "Don't worry about him, my friend, your punishment will be even worse. He cannot longer feel anything, since he's dead. You, on the other hand, will be left to rot inside the stomach of a certain toad. Gamabunta, will you be so kind to release him" – Said Jiraya, while doing hand seals and slammed both his hands on the ground, saying **Gamakuchi Shibari no Jutsu** (Toad Mouth Binding Jutsu). Suddenly, the scenery changed and it switched to inside the toad's stomach just like the first time Jiraya did this jutsu against Itachi and Kisame. Hidan looked around, afraid until tendrils suddenly grabbed him and took him inside to be devoured by the toad's stomach.

Jiraya was already outside looking up, wondering about the benefits of Naruto's counter-intelligence mission. He was enjoying this thing way too much and wondered if by doing this, he could beat Orochimaru. One thing was sure, though, Akatsuki now lost two more of his goons, thus they will have a harder time gathering the tailed beasts. Taking the scroll of Kakuzu's remains, Jiraya jumped on top of Gamabunta's head and asked for a trip back to Konoha to which the toad snarled and began to jump towards Fire Country. When he left, though, a giant plant emerged from the battlefield and looked the fleeing toad, before vanishing once again to tell Pein of the troubling news.

Back to Jiraya, he was conversing with Gamabunta about Naruto and how he was fairing these days. Gamabunta expressed his displeasure of not being summoned often by either Jiraya or Naruto, only for the toad sannin to laugh while joking that when he called the boss toad, he was always grumbling about not wanting to be summoned to this plain of existence. "Watch your mouth Jiraya, I was just asking about the brat. I heard that he became a hunter-nin after a jounin of Konoha died, isn't that right?" – Asked Gamabunta to which Jiraya nodded and explained everything, beginning from Naruto taking the blame for Sarutobi Asuma's passing and choosing to leave the village so that Akatsuki don't bother the village after me, nor give them the chance to use someone he cared about against him. The toad was impressed with the boy, but Jiraya continued talking. "I think the reason he doesn't summon you, is because by doing so, people would recognize who was behind the mask and his identity would be revealed. In time, though, he will lose the mask and fight alongside us once again, bunta" – Said Jiraya.

* * *

**===In Konoha===**

Inside the mission archives, two people were looking intently and reading about all of a certain blond's missions since he was a genin until now. D, C and B ranked missions were recorded for everyone from jounin up to look at so that they could gauge what was happening to the genins and chunnins of the village. Kurenai and Kakashi read tons of papers, in hopes of finding some trace of information about who tipped Akatsuki about Naruto's whereabouts. Kurenai was already fuming since she couldn't find anything, but Kakashi, on the contrary, was focused on one particular mission, the wave arc. Some details of the mission escaped his knowledge at the time like Naruto saving Inari and his mother from two goons that were supposed to kidnap them for leverage.

However, what interested him, though, wasn't that. Missions that suffers a change in rank are usually the one that all ninjas want to read it, hence what Kakashi's interest was focused on. He knew Danzou was smart and wouldn't put his name as the one who read the archive, but Kakashi didn't need to see his name. Several of the names scribbled at the file were common names like himself, Asuma, Gai and a few Tokubetsu jounins. However, there was one or two that he didn't know about. Kurenai saw Kakashi picking a file and went towards him to find what he found out. "This mission log picked my interest. It was Team 7's first C ranked mission which in turn, was updated to A ranked, because of the fact that we encountered C and A ranked missing-nins. Now, the ones who read are common names, but there are two here that I don't know about. Do you know who they are?" – Asked Kakashi to which Kurenai looked at the two names only to find one that she knew. "I know only one, Kakashi. Kurama Yakumo, former Anbu member and growing profusely at the genjutsu department. Naruto helped her get over a demon that was assaulting her mind, so she wanted to know a little bit about Naruto, but the other one is strange as well" – Explained Kurenai.

Kakashi wrote the name in a separate sheet of paper and closed the wave arc mission. He had a hunch of this man's involvement with Danzou's Ne division and went to the listed shinobi archives, followed by Kurenai. Something wasn't right and he would get to the bottom of this. Kakashi now felt ashamed to see people messing around with his student, thus spying Naruto's whereabouts. After entering inside the Konoha ninja force registry, Kakashi began searching for the name that appeared on the wave arc mission. Takara Shinobu wasn't found at all and both Kakashi and Kurenai ran into the list two times. "Something is wrong in this. This mission was restricted to jounin and above; it can't be possible for this man to see it and not be listed as a Konoha shinobi" – Explained Kakashi, earning a nod from Kurenai.

"Maybe, the name is false so this can't be linked to Danzou. That would be a plausible solution for investigating on Naruto's archives without having to worry about anyone finding out" – Said Kurenai, before seeing Kakashi nodding in negative. "No, he wouldn't be able to do something like that, without alerting unwanted attention. My guess is this man is one of his goons from Ne, telling everything for Danzou. The hard thing, though, is that we met a dead end. Until we can find this man and get the information of him, there is no way we link this to Danzou unless…." – Said Kakashi as he thought for a while. It was risky, but after his time with Naruto, Sai changed and got away from Ne operations. "I happen to know someone who could point out who is this Shinobu and hopefully, we can link this to Danzou in no time".

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

After getting out of the water, Naruto got dressed and jumped towards the next set of trees. Mizuki was last seen near a village between the border between Fire and River Country, so he would arrive there and summon Gamakichi to track the man. Naruto was finding it strange how light he was feeling at the moment. It was like all the weight on his body was nonexistent, the sword, the weights. Instantly, Naruto jumped from a tree to the other in nothing more than a blur. The speed was new to him and sometimes, Naruto would miss the tree from passing the place where he needed to land his feet. Immediately, Naruto focused chakra to his feet and began dancing around the huge set of trees, while trying to get accustomed to his new speed. The way he moved was similar to Lee with his weights on. **It seems all the training really paid off. You are now adjusted to the weights on your body to the point that they are no longer useable. Release them and you'll see your real speed"** – Said Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded and released before charging towards the incoming trees, faster than ever.

_Man, this feels nice. I wonder if Lee feels the same thing when speeding like this. The wind on my face is amazing__, _thought Naruto as he kept jumping through the trees like blurs. **"Don't get used to this, though, Naruto. Upon reaching the proper store, we are going to purchase heavier weights. The way for the muscles to be more adjusted and ripped is for it to not get accustomed. We need to increase the pace, constantly until you can reach the designated size. Find a clearing and we'll train your new agility so we can use it effectively in battle" **– Instructed Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded and continued to jump through trees until he landed in the designated clearing.

As he fought against the kage bunshins, Naruto was smiling. He has become stronger training together with Kyuubi and sometimes, he wondered why he didn't become stronger before. Of course, he knew the answer to that question, but now that he saw the results of this training, he wished he changed a lot sooner. "**Don't get too cocky brat, you still have ways to improve, but yes you are stronger and faster. Now you realize that you should've done these years ago, instead of playing the role of the fool, the dead last. Now, I'm going to teach you a new katon ninjutsu. It's time that I taught you my demon techniques, since after all, we are one. So, the technique is called Katon Makaihinote (**Fire Release: Hell Fire Jutsu). **This jutsu takes a lot out of you just like the furious hurricane, but in time, your chakra will grow and you'll be able to do it. Now, this fire is different. It's hotter than the elemental fire; however fail in comparison to that Uchiha's Ametarasu. Unfortunately, the god of the sun technique is stronger. These are the hand signs, just mold the necessary chakra and slam both your hands on the ground. The fire will erupt from the ground" – **Explained Kyuubi, earning a nod from Naruto who summoned Kyuubi's chakra and molded the seals, before slamming his hands on the ground.

Suddenly, white flames erupted from the ground, like a volcano and burned a tree in seconds. Naruto, then, dispelled the technique because it would burn everything in its path. Being satisfied with the jutsu and his new speed, Naruto once again rushed towards his designated assignment, after all it wouldn't be nice to keep Mizuki waiting. According to the bingo book, very few hunters ever tried their luck against the man, only to be defeated and of course, dead. Whatever skills Mizuki acquired, not only cured him but also granted him more powers. As Naruto crossed Fire Country straight to Border Town between River Country, his eyes saw a couple of leaf shinobis camping not far from him. By the looks of it, was a couple of chunnins and a jounin, but none of them were familiar to Naruto, so he kept on going.

Two hours later, he arrived at the border town and quickly got inside a nice hotel right in the beginning of the little city. Once inside his room, he summoned Gamakichi and asked him to use his nature chakra in order to sense someone with high chakra. Gamakichi didn't need much time and found only one man that filled the description. **"Naruto, the guy I sensed is a little bit far, but I believe he is within the limits of this town, however I can't pinpoint his precise location, sorry"** – Said Gamakichi, but Naruto waved him off, telling him not to worry and appreciated the help. Said toad greeted him goodbye and Naruto got out of the hotel in hopes of finding Mizuki and settling this thing once and for all.

The city did have its charms. As Naruto was walking around trying to find Mizuki, the blond couldn't help but look around and administer the beauty that was only increased when the sun began its descend. Suddenly, the target appeared leaving what seemed a grocery store and began walking away. Naruto decided to follow the man through the many roofs in hopes of reaching a clearance. However, what Naruto didn't know was that Mizuki already sensed him and was only waiting for him to strike before killing yet another leaf-nin. After the clearing arrived, Mizuki awaited the strike who in turn, never arrived. When he turned, he saw a hunter-nin walking towards him with hands on pocket and found it strange that he didn't try to kill him when he got the chance. Immediately, Mizuki was on high alert. He heard rumor of a powerful hunter-nin and worried that this guy might be him.

His musings were cut short when he heard the hunter-nin speak. "Touji Mizuki, for your crimes against Konoha, you are hereby sentenced to death" – Said Naruto to which Mizuki snarled and fell into a defensive position. This guy's presence was strong, but Mizuki wouldn't go down easily. "Don't underestimate hunter-nin, a few of your kind tried before and failed, what makes you think, your fate will be different?" – Snarled Mizuki, before silence enveloped the battlefield. For a few seconds, no one said anything, but instead, they turned look at one another. Naruto, then, took off his sword and began to talk. "Because I've already beat you several times before and now will be the last" – Said Naruto, before summoning chakra to his feet and charging Mizuki like a blur with his sword.

Mizuki saw the hunter one time and then the man vanished in thin air. Suddenly, a huge gash on the side of his stomach was formed and blood poured out of it, obliging Mizuki to place his hands on the wound and snarl at his opponent's speed. "Tell me something Mizuki, how did you managed to survive the affects of Orochimaru's drug? The last time I saw you, you were begging for breath and your whole body shrieked, what happened?" – Asked the hunter-nin, earning a look in surprise from Mizuki who in turn, wondered who this hunter-nin was. "Who are you, goddamit? How did you know about Orochimaru-sama's potion?" – Asked Mizuki, before hearing a laugh from Naruto, who in turn, responded. "Well, my identity is not your concern Mizuki, however I fail to believe that the bingo book was accurate, you don't seem all that powerful to be granted an A ranked status" – Said Naruto, earning a snarl from Mizuki who by now, was clenching his teeth in anger, before making hand seals. "Let's see you be able to dodge this Hunter-nin. A lot of your friends died from it. **Raiton Rakurai **(Lightning Release: Thunderbolt Jutsu)" – Said Mizuki as a huge thunderbolt charged against Naruto who just stood there, molding his chakra towards his wind barrier.

After the thunderbolt hit, Mizuki was surprised to see a wind barrier around the hunter-nin, thus protecting him from the attack. Suddenly, he heard Naruto screaming **Fuuton Daitoppa **(Wind Release: Great Breakthrough Jutsu) and a immense gust of wind sent him flying, before using the momentum to flip his body and fall on his feet. When he got up, though, he saw Naruto's sword be ignited with flame, before the hunter-nin vanished. Suddenly, an immense pain reached Mizuki's neck and in an instant, he was dead once and for all. **"This imbecile didn't give us a lot of a fight. I was hoping he could give us more"** – Whined Kyuubi inside Naruto's mind to which Naruto nodded and did all the steps necessary to send the man's head back to Konoha as proof of the kill and burned Mizuki's body. It wasn't long until Gamakichi returned with the money.

* * *

**===In Konoha===**

After checking with Sai, both Kurenai and Kakashi found that Shinobu was Sai's sensei in Ne. Right now, they were discussing their findings with Tsunade about initiate a full investigation on Shinobi and Danzou. Suddenly, someone entered from the window and alerted all those present. "Wow, easy it's me, I thought you'd be glad to see me" – Said Jiraya, earning a popping vein from Tsunade and a following punch while screaming 'use the door next time, pervert. Kakashi and Kurenai sweat dropped at their interaction. When Jiraya approached once again, he told the news about how he used Naruto's counter-intelligence program and managed to take out Hidan and Kakuzu, earning wide-eyes from everyone present. Kakashi told the sannin about their conviction of Danzou's right hand Shinobu to which Jiraya nodded and began to think about it for a second.

"I tried asking questions to Hidan, but he didn't know anything. I bet only their leader knows who is telling them information. Danzou is smart and won't show anything out of the blue. Even if you put Anbu to watch him 24 hours, he simply won't do anything until you drop the investigation. The best course of action would be to follow this Shinobu and see what we can find about it"- Offered Jiraya, earning nods from those present. "Okay, then, since I'm no longer needed here, I'll be going. I still have to tell the news of Akatsuki to the blond; does anyone wish me to tell something to him?" – Asked Jiraya. Kakashi asked if he could go with him to see Naruto since he kind of missed the hyperactive blond a little bit. Jiraya said that Naruto changed and that Kakashi wouldn't be able to recognize him, but Kakashi shrugged it off and still wanted to go. Kurenai was still pregnant so she couldn't travel, but she gave a message to the blond as did Tsunade. It wasn't long until both Kakashi and Jiraya hopped on top of Gamabunta and they went to River Country in hopes of reaching Naruto tomorrow.

After a while, Kurenai left the building towards the hospital for some check up when she saw Hana leaving the veterinary section, apparently sad about something. After greeting her and asking what's wrong, Hana stated that she didn't hear about Naruto and that she wanted to talk with him for a while. Hana expressed a dormant feeling inside of her for the blond and seriously wished to converse with him. Kurenai smiled at the girl and told her that unfortunately Naruto wouldn't arrive for some time. Although Hana wasn't surprised to hear this since Naruto was a hunter-nin, a part of her wished that he abandoned the job and return to Konoha so that they could go out or something like that. Kurenai felt sad for the girl when an idea appeared. "Hana, the Hokage has a secure network communication with Naruto, maybe you could send him a letter or something, you know to meet him somewhere" – Offered Kurenai, earning a look in wonder from Hana, who in turn asked why the Hokage would bother doing this for her.

"Tsunade-sama considers Naruto to be family, of course she would do that, specially seeing that you have feelings for him" – Said Kurenai, earning a blush in response from the Inuzuka vet. "Well, I guess I can talk to her about it, then. I'll write a letter to him and give it to Tsunade-sama tomorrow morning, thanks Kurenai-chan" – Said Hana before leaving with her triplets towards the Inuzuka compound.

* * *

**===In Tsunade's office===**

Tsunade was finishing the paperwork that was accumulated because of Naruto's mission when a sudden knock on the door was heard. When the person entered, though, Tsunade was surprised to say the least. Inuzuka Tsume was friends with her before she and Shizune left the village, but after she returned to be Godaime Hokage, not once did the woman come to her office. "Hello Tsunade-sama, how is the paperwork treating you?" – Asked Tsume with a smile that earned a vein pop from Tsunade. "The answer to that question is always a negative one, what can I do for you Tsume?" – Asked the Hokage, a little suspicious of Hana opening her mouth to her mother.

The Inuzuka woman, though, waved her suspicious away by simply wanting to talk about a hunter-nin to whom her daughter was infatuated with. Tsunade remembered Hana talking about Naruto and smiled. "It seems, Tsunade-sama, that Hana has been talking a lot about this new hunter-nin's fame and even one day, I caught her having what appeared to be a 'good' dream about him. She told me that you would have information about him and I admit to say that I'm curious about this guy. Until now, no man did this to my Hana" – Said Tsume to which Tsunade smiled at the mother who was thinking of Naruto as a son-in-law. "Tsume, before I tell you about him, you must swear secrecy about his identity, simply because very powerful people could use this information against him, do you agree?" – Asked Tsunade, earning looks of wonder from the woman, but nodded anyway.

* * *

**===With Jiraya===**

The next day, Jiraya and Kakashi were eating some dango for breakfast in an inn not so far away from Fire Country's border with River Country. He sent a messenger toad to go fetch Naruto and tell him where to meet him and now was only waiting for the brat to arrive. Kakashi for his part, was reading Jiraya's notes on a next book of his and unsurprisingly so, he was attached instantly. Along the trip, Jiraya told him about Naruto's adventures so far and how far had he got since he left the village. Kakashi had to say he was suffering in anticipation to see how much his student grew.

Suddenly, a figure appeared on the horizon and both of them could see the hunter-nin mask. Naruto received the message from Jiraya and wondered why the man would want to speak with him about. He sent a note back, telling he would arrive the next morning. As Naruto arrived, he eyed Jiraya, but he saw another familiar person reading what seemed to be notes of some kind. When the silver hair was visible, Naruto knew right away it was his old sensei Kakashi. The two elder shinobi got up and waited for Naruto to arrive. Kakashi looked at the hunter-nin and wondered if this man was actually the one he called Naruto. Naruto was now the same size as him in terms of body mass and Kakashi could see that Naruto has indeed changed.

Upon arrival, even before anyone could greet him, Naruto initiated. "So, what is that you wish to speak to me about, Jiraya-san?" – Asked Naruto. Kakashi flinched at not being greeted by his old student, but vowed to not bother him. Suddenly, Naruto asked to eat inside where he could be more comfortable to which both elders nodded. Once inside, Naruto took off his mask and showed his face. Instantly, both Jiraya and Kakashi swore he saw Minato looking at them. "Hello Kakashi-sensei. Sorry I didn't talk to you before, it's just that while using the mask, I couldn't risk someone eavesdropping" – Said Naruto to which Kakashi smiled and nodded, secretly relieved to see that after all the changes, Naruto was still Naruto. Jiraya, for his part, was looking at Naruto and wondering why he didn't have the same hospitality as Kakashi to which Naruto responded saying that while using the mask, he couldn't do anything that could jeopardize his identity. So, the group began talking about what happened and the next course of actions in the future.


	9. Suna's request

**Chapter 9 – ****Suna request**

A lone figure was walking around within the outskirts of a small village located within Fire Country's territory. Tall, maybe 5'9 and quite muscular, the man stopped for a while in order to scan his surroundings. Being someone of his position, he just couldn't let himself to just rest and stop worrying about people hunting after him. After a while, the man continued to walk towards whatever destination he was headed to, however that was the last thing the man did in his life as a blur appeared and slashed the man's neck with a sword, thus killing him instantly.

Seconds after the body fell on the floor, the blur suddenly stopped and stood next to his victim. The killer's clothes were black from head to toe, except for white mask that was peculiar to hunter-nins. A couple of weeks passed since his encounter with Jiraya and Kakashi and safe to say, Naruto was hard-pressed not to respect the sannin for being able to take out two members of the Akatsuki at the same time, even if he had help from Gamabunta. AS to the kill, it took a while for Naruto to find this guy as he knew that the B ranked missing-nins would be hard to track.

Naruto also learned about Akatsuki's objective behind gathering the power of the bijuus and he had to say it was simply a waste of time to do so much for something that was bound to happen for eternity. Battles would continue happening as the shinobi world exists. No matter if some ninjas fight evil, eventually there would be a war and in the end, innocent blood would be spilled. Naruto wasn't strange to the idea that the more light that illuminates the planet, bigger the shadow that lurks within. "**It's kind of strange to hear you think like this Naruto. I'd think you believed in peace for everyone from the way you acted before" **- Wondered Kyuubi while Naruto was doing the hunter-nin routine and sealed the man's head inside a scroll and sent it to Konoha in order to receive his bounty.

_It would be even stranger if I said that I believed in peace for everyone and kept doing what I do. It would be plainly hypocritical on my part to go against my enemies because of the ones they murdered while I'm actually doing the same thing. _– Said Naruto, earning a nod from the fox inside of him. **"Human beings are worse than demons, simply because they are unpredictable. They are ruled by emotions and can change from a nice person to a cold blooded murder**."** – **Explained Kyuubi, earning a nod from Naruto, who was already taking his bingo book and scratching the name of the man he just killed.

Suddenly, Gamakichi arrived and handled two scrolls to Naruto. One containing the money for the capture and the other one appeared to be a message. He kept the scroll with the money inside his kunai holster and opened the scroll with the message. Surprisingly enough, the message was from Kiba's sister Hana saying that she wanted to meet with him in order to discuss some issues. **"I could imagine what she'd want with you, Naruto…."** – Laughed Kyuubi like a school girl, earning a sigh in dismay from the blond who, until now, was relieved that the damn fox wasn't being a bloody pervert. _There you go again, ero-kitsune. Already assuming she wanted to have sex with me out of nowhere' - _Said Naruto, earning a wonder whisper from Kyuubi who then explained that none of the woman he slept with were any different to which Naruto told the fox to just stop talking for a while.

Turning once again to read the message, Hana wanted to meet him inside a village not very far away from his position and that she would arrive there tomorrow night if he accepted to meet here, that is. He didn't have an objection against the meeting and he could use the time to rest a little bit inside a hotel. Quickly writing his consent, he gave the scroll reply to the toad, before seeing him vanish. However, he couldn't help but wonder what the woman could want to talk to him about. Naruto wondered if, perhaps, he spoke too much and now his identity was revealed to Hana and cursed himself from this.

* * *

**===Inside Tsunade's office===**

Tsunade and Hana were talking about Naruto's status as a hunter-nin and how far was he in terms of the bingo book when Gamakichi arrived with Naruto's reply. Opening the scroll, Tsunade smiled and said to the girl that Naruto accepted the request, but the blond insisted that the mask remained, because of fear that someone might see his face, thus ruining the entire operation. "Hana-san, he accepted to meet with you at the designated place, but use caution upon approaching him in a public place. Try not to address him by his name and everything will be fine. I'm giving you a fake recon mission close to that area, so that you can talk to him. Pack your stuff and good luck" – Explained Tsunade, earning a nod from Hana before she left the office.

After Hana left, Tsunade was left alone for a while to think of the recent activities so far. So far, Kakashi and Sai are following the man known as Shinobu from Ne for quite a while, but they discovered nothing worth of use. It turns out Danzou trains his man to be experts in what they do. However, Tsunade seriously believed to be on the right track because of Kakashi's findings. Jiraya was also using counter-intelligence to change Naruto's fake locations from time to time, but the white haired sannin expressed his concerns over Akatsuki simply cancelling their connection with the rat and go after Naruto on their own. Tsunade, of course, was worried but she knew that being a hunter-nin, must've taught Naruto some advanced evasion procedures in case of being outmatched.

Last but not least, the rookie 9 were becoming impatient to know about the damn blond and often chose to question about when Naruto would return from his mission with Jiraya. She heard from Kurenai and Shikamaru that the chunnins were becoming rather annoying and even Ino was demanding to know what really happened to Naruto. Nonetheless, right now it wasn't the best time to come clean with them. He was getting stronger that's for sure, however he still wasn't Akatsuki level. According to Kakashi's report on his growth, Naruto put up some muscles and exhaled battle experience, however until he moved on to the A ranked missing-nins, Naruto's counter-intelligence mission will proceed as planned.

It was late at night so Tsunade took the opportunity of some alone time and grabbed her all time favorite bottle of sake, before pouring some and then looking at the village she was sworn to protect. Somehow, she knew that something was missing; none one to call her 'baachan'; no one to enter inside her office screaming instead of talking. Without Naruto, her life was rather boring to say the least. It has been quite a lot of time ever since he chose to follow the lone career of the hunter-nin and, actually, she was jealous of Hana for being able to leave the village to see him while she was stuck inside her office, trying to clean the ever-growing paperwork. The blond sannin couldn't help but begin to remember her life after she met Naruto and in seconds, tears fell freely from her face.

Tsunade considered the circumstances of the hunter's life and how much he had to give, before he could collect what was rightfully his. Naruto was treated like shit all his life and not once the blond complained about it. He had that goofy smile on his face that was impossible to ignore and quite easy to grow attached to. However, after what happened to Asuma, Tsunade didn't know if realization fell upon Naruto or what happened for him to just change his behavior so much. His reasons for leaving, though, were unfounded, well at least to Tsunade. The idea of Akatsuki using someone against him was of course, a dangerous thing to happen, but Konoha wasn't the strongest hidden village for nothing and she could, clearly, think of several Konoha-nins that could go up against the red-cloud organization.

Tsunade didn't know whether or not they were all the same as Itachi's level, but if Jiraya was able to take on two, then they weren't invincible. After pouring more sake, Tsunade was ashamed to believe that she was being selfish in this whole ordeal. She actually believed that Naruto didn't need to leave and if Akatsuki came, Konoha would deal with them. Nevertheless, she failed to comprehend about the damage it would be if S ranked missing-nins arrived in Konoha and used their techniques to destroy the village. While Konoha produces fine shinobi, Akatsuki wouldn't be bound to fighting fairly, therefore if they came; there was high possibility that Konoha suffers a lot of casualties before being able to take on Akatsuki.

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

After sending the message reply, Naruto got up from his position and left the village before someone saw him. Burning the enemy's corpse served two reasons, in Naruto's mind. One was the official one since by doing this, Konoha prevents other villages to capture the body and learn its secrets, if any. Naruto's second reason for doing this was to erase any signs of his actions since the only thing left are the dead's ashes and that was already swept by the wind. Now, he was heading towards his destination to meet with Hana, however since he still had some time, he took his time and just travelled at a slow pace, although no one would consider It to be slow. For a week now, Naruto purchased heavier weight as per Kyuubi's demands and now his muscles were getting acquainted with the new set.

Also, by getting better adjusted to the weights, Naruto would eventually use more chakra, hence how he was, slowly, increasing his chakra capacity. Nevertheless, since leaving Jiraya and Kakashi, the only thing Naruto trained in was getting used to the weights and some physical training with his sword, which by the way was now heavier as well. The thing is that the blond found a local blacksmith shop and requested to fix the sword steel a bit, but now using a different type of steel that would add weight to the sword. Of course, no shinobi in his sane mind would hinder his movements in such a way and Naruto wouldn't either, the thing was that when Kyuubi wanted to be a pain in the ass, there was no one that could match him in battle. Especially if the damn fox was leaving inside of him, therefore getting exclusive rights of broadcasting pain in the ass Kyuubi.

"**Stop complaining you damn brat, you are to train so that you can take on against those damn imbeciles wearing the black cloaks. Your agility is growing a lot, so don't worry about changing the weights too much. This set will be on you for quite a while, before we have to change"** – Explained Kyuubi, earning a grumbling in annoyance from Naruto who muttered 'fucking slave-driver fox', silently hoping that the kyuubi would hear and he did, but instead of complaining like he did, the fox laughed at his expense, thus earning a vein pop in Naruto's head. _I swear, someday I'll come inside that damn cage and shove my new rasengan up your ass_ – Snarled Naruto, but Kyuubi couldn't stop laughing at his expense. **"I'd like to see you try Blondie"**.

After that, the two just stopped talking for a while and Naruto travelled in silence. Kyuubi could be so annoying and he always managed to get into Naruto's nerves, nevertheless the companionship was worthy in the end. Naruto wouldn't know how to continue this if it hadn't been for his bickering together with the fox. He never believed the monster to be like this and his image of the kyuubi was changing… "**Could you go any faster brat, you're taking too long"**… or maybe not. _Quit bickering down there, bastard fox, I have all the time in the world to reach that damn hotel_.

* * *

**===In Konoha===**

After Hana left Tsunade's office, she went straight to her house. The news that Naruto agreed to see her was great and improved her mood a lot. However, a new thought ran inside her head and now she was overwhelmed by doubt and insecurity. As a proud member of a proud clan, Hana couldn't afford to be insecure; therefore it was safe to say she never felt that way. Her doubt was whether or not Naruto would return her feelings for him. She did well to remember that in their mission, there wasn't much conversation going on and Naruto was the one that talked and she was screaming at him for not taking the enemy seriously.

As a hunter-nin, one couldn't help but learn to depend on no one, simply because in the end, you only have yourself for company. What good you do her to talk to him, only for him to tell her that he didn't feel the same way as her. For some reason, this thought was unbarring to the Inuzuka; she had dreams about him, she often wondered about how he was doing, Naruto was everything she could think of right now and if he blew her away, she wouldn't know what to do. She needed to talk to someone and she needed it fast. Running with all her might back to his house, she hoped that her mother was there.

Tsume was one of those person that you could talk anything with and Hana, often times, took advice from her. On the way, she considered controlling her thoughts so as to not suffer in anticipation, however for all her might, she couldn't. The thought of Naruto dumping her was unbearable and now her hear was aching. Hana's triplets were concerned with the girl. As she ran, they followed close by and were able to feel her emotions.

It wasn't long until Hana emerged from the compound garden and rushed inside in search for her mother. Upon entering the living-room, she saw Tsume petting with her companion, before asking Hana where the fire was. "Kaa-san, can I please talk to you, it's urgent?" – Asked Hana, while feeding the triplets. Tsume nodded at the same moment and somehow knew what was this all about.

Tsume remembered her conversation with Tsunade about the hunter-nin to whom her daughter was infatuated with and she was shocked to hear the man's identity. Tsume never knew much about Naruto, except for the fact that he housed the Kyuubi no Yoko inside of him and was friends with her son. Of course, she knew of some of his achievements in time, but she admitted not having much interest in knowing about him…well until he appeared in her little Hana's life. Ever since she returned from that mission, all that Hana ever talks about was about the blond and his progress as a hunter-nin. Now, Hana was breathing hard and desperate to talk to her about something…Needless to say Tsume had a slight clue of what Hana wants to talk about.

"What is it dear, how can I help you?" – Asked Tsume, waiting for her daughter to explain. "I communicated with Naruto and he agreed to meet me in a village near here, however instead of being happy, I'm now in doubt as to whether or not he would feel the same way" – Explained Hana, earning a smile from Tsume before she got up from her seat and grabbed her daughter's hand, before looking straight to her eyes. "Hana-chan, it's clear that you're infatuated with this man, however both you and I know that he just saw you once. You can't expect a guy like him to just fall for you after one night. You need to take your time a little bit, since you'll see him, approach him with care. Get to know him a little better and allow him to get to know you as well; you know that if you just arrive there and pretty much say the L word, there is a serious possibility that he won't return it right away and you'll be devastated" – Said Tsume, slowly allowing Hana to slow her heartbeats and smile to her mother.

"Being a hunter-nin taught him to rely only for himself, it would surely take a while to break that barrier, but I understand mother…I will go slow and get to know about him. What do you think of him mother? I mean, I never got to see about your opinions towards any of the guys I went out with, but regarding him, I really want to know what you think about him" – Asked Hana, cornering her mother a little bit. Tsume never expected such a question from her daughter. Turning to think about it for a while, Tsume smiled and responded.

"I don't have any bad things to say about him. He befriended Kiba-kun and already got to help him in controlling Akamaru when he was blinded by anger. He was the one that fought against the Kazekage when Suna and Sound invaded that time. He possesses a strong spirit Hana-chan and after hearing about the reasons of his departure, my respect for him rose even more. Also Tsunade-sama thinks rather highly of him as a person, like I said I don't have any bad things to say about him, even aware of who lives inside of him". – Stated Tsume, earning a nod and a smile from Hana who in turn appreciated what her mother did and went up to her room to pack her stuff for her fake mission. After all, it would be quite a long trip.

* * *

**===With Tsunade===**

Finishing her bottle of sake, Tsunade got up from her office and looked at the time. It was rather late and now she would be able to go home. All of the shinobis were either on missions or inside the village, sleeping. So whether or not she stayed, it wouldn't really make a difference. However, just as she was about to open the door, she felt the presence of someone sneaking inside and got ready to beat the guy, only to hear. "Tsunade-hime, it's been a while, haven't it?" – Asked Jiraya while seeing the woman turn and show her not so thrilled face to see him.

"What the hell are you doing her Jiraya? I was about to leave and get some sleep" – Snarled Tsunade, before Jiraya nodded and offered to accompany her to her house. Tsunade thought about it and shrugged her shoulders, thinking nothing of it. On the way, Jiraya was explaining about the mission and how Naruto was doing. "The boy is quite skilled in the art of killing, I'll give him that. The technique that Kyuubi taught him is really something else. I'd ask him to teach me the **Katon Endou no Tsurugi **(Fire Release: Flame Sword Jutsu), but since I don't have one, it would be useless" – Explained Jiraya.

"I'm not too thrilled to hear that he is out there killing people Jiraya, even if they are criminals. I didn't want this for him and certainly not Sarutobi-sensei. He would, clearly, become a chunnin if he stayed for the chunnin exams that happened in Kumo; but, instead, he became a hunter-nin and is being trained to kill and to kill only" – Explained Tsunade, afraid for the blond's mentality.

Jiraya, though, tried to imagine Naruto as a bloody killer, but couldn't. It wasn't the blond's mentality at all. "I'd have a little more faith in him if I were you. Naruto is nothing compared to a murderer and his kills are all consequences of battling his opponent. Besides, ninjas are trained to kill and protect. He's doing both by dealing with Konoha's enemies. Eventually, he'll be strong enough to go after the strong ones and we'll be there to help him. The last time I saw him, he was dealing with B ranked missing-nins and they were all low jounin level shinobi. He is a tough one to crack" – Stated Jiraya with utmost pride.

"Well, only time will tell. I know how shinobi change after becoming a hunter-nin. Oh just so you know, Naruto is meeting Inuzuka Hana tomorrow inside a village nearby here." – Said Tsunade, earning a look in wonder from Jiraya, who heard that the girl was rather infatuated with Naruto and wanted to talk to him. Jiraya expressed his concerns over the girl and reminded Tsunade of the reason Naruto left in the first place. "Tsunade, Naruto became a hunter-nin so that Akatsuki wouldn't be able to use anyone against him…if this girl Hana gets too close to him, I fear the worst" – Reported Jiraya, but the thought was dismissed by Tsunade. "He knows that. The message reply he sent insisted that he remained with the mask; otherwise people could see his identity. Hand understands this as well" – Explained Tsunade, earning a nod from Jiraya, before he vanished in thin air, surprising Tsunade a lot. However, when she heard Sakura screaming her name, she understood it right away. _If someone saw Jiraya inside the village, people would demand answers regarding Naruto, man am I glad that he did this for me. _

"Tsunade-sama, going home?" – Asked Sakura, while she accompanied the blond. "Yes, it's getting late and the documents are pretty much taken care of, there is no reason for me to stay any longer. Tell me, though, why are you doing up this hour?" – Asked Tsunade, earning a sheepish look from Sakura who in turn, told her master that she was doing some research at the library for something she encountered one of the patients at the hospital. It wasn't long until Tsunade reached her home and she bad Sakura farewell for the night.

* * *

**===The next day===**

Just as Tsunade reached her office, she encountered a letter on her desk. As she read it, she learned that it was a request from the Kazekage to capture a missing-nin that is causing Suna's hunters quite a bit of trouble. It seemed that Gaara was asking for a specific hunter-nin from Konoha to do the job. _Well, I guess Naruto took his time to talk to the kazekage after all. It wouldn't be a surprise if Naruto helped them capture someone else. Those two do have a bond together. I'll send a message to Naruto to go to Suna and aid them_. – Thought Tsunade as she activated a seal below her desk and instantly, Gamakichi appeared, greeting the blond hokage.

"Gamakichi, would you be so kind and deliver this little mission to him? I'll be writing a message to him so just wait up a moment" – Said Tsunade, earning a nod from the toad, before he jumped towards the window. Konoha was a great place to live; it certainly looked peaceful down there. When Tsunade handed him the scroll, she stood next to him and looked at the village as well. "This village is rather quiet without him around. I'm counting the days for him to return to us and get into that door, screaming his usual obscenities and making a scene of himself" – Stated Tsunade, earning a look in wonder from the toad. The toad wondered about the blond hokage and about what she thinks of Naruto, however she was still due to know the real one and he wondered what would be her reaction once she see him back and yet not see him at all anymore. **"I understand that it will take a while for him to come back. After all, the bingo book is quite thick, even if he already narrowed down to maybe 20 or 30 foes. Don't worry, though, I'll be sure to hand him the mission scroll"** – Said Gamakichi.

"I appreciate what you're doing Gamakichi, thank you. Please hand it to him" – Asked the Hokage, earning a salute from the toad, before he vanished, leaving Tsunade alone once more to think. _I know that you are not the same anymore Naruto-kun, but I really wished to hear at least one more time you calling me baachan even if you're just doing it a favor to me. I want to see your face again_.

In seconds, Gamakichi vanished and reached Naruto's location. Someone would find it odd how a summon could show up exactly where the summoner is without he or she calls for the summon. However, before Naruto left, Jiraya designed the communication seal allowing not only Tsunade to summon Gamakichi specifically, but the toads can also locate Naruto's position. The blond was already at the hotel that he was supposed to meet with Hana and upon receiving the letter from Tsunade; he opened it and turned to read.

_Naruto-kun, it's been a while since I last saw you and I miss you a lot. Some people say that you only give value to stuff once you lose it and they were right. I didn't imagine it would be so hard to live here without seeing you walking around the village and pulling a prank or two. Nevertheless, I know you have your reasons to do what you did, but I want you to know that I miss you a lot. I guess I never got to say this out loud to you, but I consider you a part of my family along with Shizune, you're like a little brother that, while can be annoying, you can't help but love him. __Anyway, I just wanted to say that and also to say that I'll eagerly wait for you to return home and if you dare dying on me, I'll resuscitate you from the dead, only to give you the worse beating of your life, you hear me!!!_

_Well, enough of that. Within this message, is a little mission that I'm entrusting it to you. I know you have a mission to capture Konoha's missing-nins, but this was personally requested by the Kazekage. It seems they are having trouble dealing with an ex-jounin of their village and requested Konoha's best hunter-nin to aid them in capturing this foe. After your meeting with Hana, go straight to Suna and talk to the Kazekage, he'll explain everything. You'll receive the equivalent of an A ranked mission for this one and don't worry about this going into your records. This part I got covered, since your real documents are locked inside my personal vault. Good luck!!_

After Naruto finished reading, his heart couldn't help but feel warmed. True enough, Tsunade and Shizune, like the Sandaime and Iruka, were considered his family. Also it pained him greatly to hear Tsunade being sad for him, but he knew that he did the right thing and Akatsuki hasn't bothered Konoha since. His plan worked and already two of their members were taken care of.

Now as to the mission, he would gladly help Gaara any time he needed, so he didn't even bother to say he accepted the mission on the message reply, but instead focused on telling his big sister how much he came to lover her as family as well and hope that he could return home in no time. Naruto even wrote the name he called Tsunade with the sole intention of cheering her up. **"Such sentimentality…you're an interesting person Naruto"** – Whispered Kyuubi to which Naruto replied by saying that no matter what changed in his life, he'd always remember those that not only didn't treat him badly, but also made enough efforts to become a part of his life. Naruto explained to the fox that such bond isn't caused by blood, but instead by spirit, earning a nod from Kyuubi who agreed with the blond, as to the concept of family and how, even though the lack of blood bond, all four of them considered Naruto family.

In minutes, Naruto wrote the message reply and gave to Gamakichi, before seeing the toad vanishing. Looking at the sun position, Naruto realized that Hana must be approaching the place real soon and that he was supposed to put his mask on, at least to greet her outside the hotel room. As soon as he walked out of the hotel, he managed to see at the horizon, Hana's dogs and just stood there waiting for the girl to approach him in order to say hello. Suddenly, just as the dogs were about a couple meters away from him, one of the triplets literally jumped and knocked Naruto on the ground, before started licking Naruto's mask, thus showing affection for the blond.

Hana, for his part, wasn't as surprised as she should've been after seeing one of her dogs abandoning the owner's side and display such level of affection towards someone. The truth is that said dog was pretty much demanding the little group to speed things up and reach the place faster. Hana wondered if the dog knew that she was coming to meet the blond. Looking at the blond one second time, though, managed to race her heart a little bit. She remembered her mother telling to take her time and get to know him better, but now that they met once again, she wan unsure of what to say to him.

Naruto, however, helped her a little even if he was playing with the dog on top of him and in the same time, holding his mask so not to fall down. "So…Hana-san, what do I owe the pleasure of this meeting? Oh and how are the pups we retrieved a while back" – Asked Naruto as he got up, but continued to caress the dog's ears. Hana, for his part, silently thanked the blond for bringing up a subject and answered that Kuromaru's pups are doing fine and were just a few months away from completing the family training, before being placed under one of the clan's jounins.

Using the time Naruto granted her, Hana was able to address the blond. "Ah Nar…hunter-san, is there a place in private where we can talk for a while, it's important to me" – Said Hana, inside punching herself from making such mistake and looking at the mask, while waiting for him to answer. Naruto for his part snorted at the girl discovering his identity and wondered if he was to blame for this when he said of Akamaru or perhaps the Hokage told her. **"I think both of you are to blame, you earned her suspicion and the Hokage must have confirmed it."** – Explained Kyuubi, earning a mind nod from Naruto.

"Sure Hana-san, if it's my mask you wish off, the only place I trust is inside my room" – Said Naruto, before hearing Kyuubi laugh inside his head from insinuating that he was inviting the woman to his room. Hana for her part, wondered about the blond's intentions, but accepted and followed Naruto as he walked inside the hotel. "I was wondering why you choose this place for us to meet Hana-san. I was expecting maybe somewhere a little less public. Giving my position, It wouldn't be advisable to meet on such a public place" – Asked Naruto, earning a nod from Hana who in turn, explained that she knew all about the hunter-nin status and explained that the hotel location isn't well known.

After a while, the shinobis and the dogs reached the room, before Naruto opened it with his key and allowed Hana to enter along with the pups. The room was quite cozy and the open window allowed some rays of sunshine enter and illuminate it. Before Hana could say anything, Naruto was already fixing her dogs some water. "Hana-san, I don't mean to sound like a pervert here, but in order for me to remove my mask, the drapes would have to be closed" – Said Naruto, earning a smile and a nod from Hana, before she closed the drapes and then, turned to the blond who was placing his hands on his mask in order to remove it. For some reason, life suddenly stopped for Hana and her heart was beating like crazy. Hana sure has feelings for Naruto, but she fell for his personality since she didn't get to see his looks.

She heard, one time, some of her old classmates saying that Naruto has a rather similar looks to the Yondaime as a child and wondered (silently prayed) that Naruto would be as handsome as the late hokage. When Naruto removed the mask, Hana's eyes widened; any sound that she was hearing stopped; her sense of smell ceased to exist. She was having difficult to breathe. It wasn't only because of the fact that Naruto was the Yondaime reincarnated along with sexy and feral whisker marks. Falling for someone only based on the person's personality and now falling for the looks as well was tough on everyone and Hana was no exception.

Naruto was wondering what got into her for staring at him so much, but the reason wasn't that he was clueless, but rather the fact that Naruto never had someone drooling upon looking at him and he admitted to say he was feeling a little awkward with the whole situation. **"Add that to the fact that I can sense pheromones being released and you can get the idea of what she wanted with you"** – Laughed Kyuubi and wondered how the blond would resolve the matter. Naruto was indeed an interesting person and Kyuubi was beginning to thank the man who locked him inside the blond and thus giving him the opportunity of entertainment 24/7. Naruto wouldn't do anything drastic, but needed to wake her up, or else she might be doing something drastic. When he asked for her name, Hana instantly woke up from her slumber and blushed instantly from being caught starring. She couldn't help it though and immediately apologized to the blond.

"I'm so sorry Naruto, I didn't mean to…" – Said Hana before Naruto waved his hand dismissing the necessity for apologies. "No need to apologize Hana-san, so what did you wish to talk to me about?" – Asked Naruto before Hana blushed some more, but took the courage to explain that she wanted to get to know him better. Naruto was confused, of course. He did think that Hana was beautiful and really attractive, but he never thought that she would like to know about him of all people. Naruto was a little bit modest when it came to talking about his qualities, mostly because all he heard was people saying bad things about him and almost no one did the opposite. He accepted to talk about it, though, seeing that the woman came all the way up here from Konoha just to do that.

"So then Hana, there isn't much to know about me. I entered the academy at age 6, graduating at 12 with Kiba. I…" – Said Naruto, but was stopped by Hana who in turn, smiled. "Naruto, I happen to know about you shinobi accomplishments both from Kiba and Kurenai-chan, it's just that….okay I guess some explanation are in order, here. For some time now, I've been thinking about you and how much affection you displayed toward one of my dogs and safe to say, I didn't get to meet a guy that my dogs didn't bark or growl, instead they sense you as being someone pure and us Inuzukas happen to place a lot of faith in them. They act as our guides in life. We trust those that are trusted by our dogs" – Explained Hana, earning a nod from Naruto, followed by a smile that caused the same insecurity in Hana once again.

"I see, it must be an honor to be someone trusted by them and also a little strange, since people don't seem to warm up to me for reasons that I rather not divulge at the moment" – Stated Naruto, earning a look in wonder from Hana, before realization dwelled on her. "I only wished people would see past their hate and see you for who you are and yes Naruto, I know of your prisoner. The fact that the dogs doesn't sense any evil intent coming from you, show us Inuzukas that you have a pure and caring soul. I wonder, though, how it was for you to grow up as you did without anything" – Asked Hana, before seeing Naruto looking at her in surprise. The blond should've known that Hana knew about his tenant, since she was older and was perhaps alive when the fox attacked the village.

"How I managed to grow up, you want to know. Well, I guess I haven't given much thought about it, but I guess I can answer that for you. Ever since I was little, the only thing I received from people was hate and grief glares from the village's citizens. At the time, I wasn't aware of my condition and tried to figure out what was it that I did to deserve it. I was young back then and couldn't figure out, so I let it go and just survived, while ignoring the hateful glares" – Initiated Naruto, as Hana focused on hearing each sentence from the blond as he told his life to her.

"Some time before I entered the academy, the Sandaime Hokage decided to increase my allowance and gave me the apartment that I now live in Konoha. Often times he would come to visit and he even introduced me to the ramen stand where I used to eat a lot. My time at the academy was initially good, but it took me a while longer than the other kids to learn the subject, thus being on the center of laughs from the class, including your brother by the way. I managed to graduate on my third attempt and got placed at Team Seven under Hatake Kakashi's guidance. The rest you already know so I won't bother to repeat" – Said Naruto, though leaving the worse part of his childhood to himself. He didn't tell her that, sometimes, instead of glares, people would use him as a body bag, especially on his birthday and how his growth was hindered at the academy because of the teachers.

Hana knew that Naruto wouldn't talk about the tough parts of his life as she also knew when a person was omitting information. Nevertheless, what he told was enough and did get more questions for her to ask. "You'd be mad at me from saying that your life must have been tough, wouldn't you?" – Asked Hana, earning a slow nod from Naruto. "As I grew up, my knowledge about hardships in life became subjective, even though no one had to deal with things they didn't cause. I know for a fact that people have their own nightmare to think about so it wouldn't do well for me to show everyone how it was for me growing up. Take Kurenai-san for instance, she lost her husband and now her baby will be born without a father to look out for him" – Explained Naruto.

Hana couldn't help but agree with the blond. Indeed, Kurenai will have a hard time raising her child, but she smiled upon knowing more about Naruto's strong personality and how he overcame his life hardships and now was growing to become a fine shinobi. Hana couldn't help but wonder if it was really Naruto who was saying all these insightful words. "You are a good man Naruto" – Acknowledged Hana, but was surprised to see the blond nodding in negative. "You can't say that for someone whose profits are earned through killing people" – Explained Naruto, but this time it was Hana who was nodding her head. "While it's true that hunter-nins are meant only to kill, that alone doesn't show the ninja's personality or whether he is good or evil and there is where my companions appear. If you were evil like you say you are, then my dogs would be cautions in your presence and most certainly, they would attack you on the spot" – Stated Hana, before one of the dogs licked Naruto's face before barking at him, which in dog terms, meant 'caress my ears'.

The two remained talking for a while about Hana's life and how it is to have Kiba as a brother. Naruto confessed about his rather awkward winning against Kiba during the chunnin exam preliminaries and Hana couldn't help but laugh at Naruto's expense. The two were having a nice time talking and didn't realize that the sun was now replaced by the moon. Naruto suggested calling for some dinner to which Hana gladly accepted, since she knew Naruto would have to put his mask if they were to eat at the hotel restaurant. Eventually, the food arrived and Hana have to apologize for the waiter because one of her dogs jumped on the food and send the waiter to the ground.

"So, Naruto, tell me about your hunter-nin career so far. How far on the bingo book, you are now?" – Asked Hana as she set the dinner on the floor and placed some dog food for her companions. Naruto for his turn nodded and began. "Well, I'm already at the B ranked section, though the opponents now are rather dangerous to say the least. There was one man who managed to hit me with a lightning attack; needless to say I almost passed out from the pain. If it wasn't for the kyuubi, I'd surely pass out. This guy happened to be the first of the B section. The next ones, though, were much easier as I resorted to more subtle approaches than simply challenging them for a fight" – Said Naruto, earning a nod from experience from Hana who suffered a lightning attack as well and explained that she had to rest a least a week at the hospital.

Hana even showed Naruto the scar on her left shoulder to prove her point to which Naruto showed his as well, but where as her was the shoulder, Naruto's was located near his chest and when he exposed the scar for Hana, the girl couldn't help but blush upon seeing some flesh. A couple hours later, it was already time to sleep and Naruto offered his bed to Hana to sleep while he settled for sleeping on the ground next to the dogs. At first, Hana objected since she wouldn't like to be a bother and offered herself to sleep next to the dogs instead, but after a little persuasion from Naruto, she accepted the bed. Right now, she was inside the room's bathroom, getting changed to sleep, though her mind was racing on her conversation with Naruto. Truth be told, she adored her time with the blond and by now, getting to know him better, Hana was certain of her feelings for him. She thanked the heavens that she was able to control her pheromones, but now it was time to see his resolve in all this.

Hana admitted that her meeting with him was great, but she knew if she returned to Konoha, it wouldn't take long for her to fell the utmost necessity to talk to him once more. If his resolve was as big as hers, Hana would at least prefer to settle for something deeper for the two of them, so that when he came back home, he would return to her. It was now time for a little bit of teasing.

In the living room, Naruto was petting the dogs while thinking of the woman getting dressed inside the bathroom. Hana was sure gorgeous and attractive, but what interested Naruto the most was that she was rather nice to talk to and whatever decision he made, she would simply respect it and move along. He knew, now, from Kyuubi, that she was interested in him and as the conversation flowed, Naruto's interest for her intensified. **"It's been a while since you've been with a girl, wouldn't be nice to feel once again"** – Asked Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded, but with Hana wouldn't be just a one night stand. She wouldn't cross Fire Country just for sex. Naruto, though, couldn't shake off Hana's sexy figure out of his mind.

It was even worse when Naruto saw Hana leaving the bathroom with nothing except an over-sized white shirt and went, innocently, straight to the bed, even though she caught his eyes staring at her. In seconds, she was already lied down and making sexy noises while feeling the sheet's fabric. "Are you comfortable Hana-san?" – Asked Naruto, from the living room, earning a nod in acceptance from Hana who in turn, smirked. _Operation teasing begun, let's see how much you hold up before you join me_. "Very comfortable; this bed is amazing. It's a shame, though, that you don't get to feel it" – Whispered Hana, surprising Naruto with the boldness and even the one inside the blond who by now, was releasing his own pheromones to match the girl and assist Naruto.

Hana felt the pheromones, but was able to control herself. It wouldn't do well for an Inuzuka to lose at this game. Naruto for his part, smiled and turned to watch as Hana contortioned her body a lot in ways to feel the bed entirely and relay a clear message of her intentions to the blond. _Wait a minute; she's teasing me, isn't she? Well, it's her loss_ – Thought Naruto as he heard Kyuubi agreeing with him. The girl was in serious trouble now. "Well, it's really would be a shame if I didn't get to feel it, wouldn't it? Perhaps, the bed is big enough for both of us" – Said Naruto, before Kyuubi did his part of the attack by releasing quite the amount of pheromones.

While this was her idea, she could feel the intensity of Naruto's pheromones and could imagine who would be behind all of this. His question was inclined to be quite bold to say and the increase in pheromones served to incite her urges and don't treat Naruto's reply as an act of perversion. At this moment, Hana knew she was dealing with a professional and she already knew that the outcome of this match would be a win-win situation for her. If Naruto come and sleep with her will be worth the travel and if Naruto submits to her teasing will also be worth her travel. "You are free to come and feel it if you so wish, Naruto" – Teased Hana, but at this point, any contrary act would be inconsequential as Naruto was already moving straight to the bed.

It didn't take long for Naruto to sit next to the girl and place his hand on Hana's cheek and caress it gently near the Inuzuka birth mark, earning a moan in satisfaction from the girl. Hana was surprised that Naruto managed to reach the Inuzuka's soft spot and smiled at him. She wanted him so much that she often had dreams of this exact situation. Naruto smiled and bend over to position his face right in front of Hana as he smiled, before gently initiating a deep kiss on her lips. Needless to say, Hana was in heaven. She wrapped her arms behind his neck and pushed him closer to her and Naruto simply complied. As they were kissing, Naruto used his hands to caress Hana's neck gently while his tongue asked for permission to enter. After a while of kissing, Hana's hands moved to take Naruto's jacket off, making Naruto stop the kiss and look at her hands in wonder before smiling and looking back at her face. "You don't want this, Naruto?" – Asked Hana, only for Naruto to snort at her. "Only someone crazy wouldn't want this" – Said Naruto as he, then, whispered close to her ears. _Hana-chan_.

Needless to say Hana was astonished to hear the suffix added to her name and smiled, before taking off Naruto's jacket while Naruto was gently licking her neck, thus pleasuring her in ways that the Inuzuka never thought possible. Naruto didn't do much to her and her body was already shaking in anticipation for what will sure to become legendary. After throwing his jacket on the ground, Hana proceeded to slowly pass her hands throughout Naruto's arms, thus feeling every one of his ripped muscles as well as some battle scars which turned her on even more. Eventually, Naruto's hands were now massaging her body and Hana was both surprised and excited at his unexpected movements. Hana always thought Naruto to be a more controlled person, not at all driven by emotions; however this type of situation wasn't like other ones, so she waved it off and just let him massage her body, however Naruto wasn't disrespecting her by going below the shirt, but he did pleasure her the same way. Hana found Naruto's hands to be incredibly soft, despite knowing about a few of Naruto's kills. As he rubbed her chest, Hana couldn't help but want more and by now, she was losing control over her actions.

Hana took off her shirt and surprised Naruto, since the girl wasn't wearing anything else. Naruto was sure he was worshipping the body of a goddess as he used his hand to caress Hana's bare skin, while approaching her mouth once again and kiss it this time with more intensity, more aggression. Instantly, Hana's animalistic instincts kicked in and suddenly she was possessed. She began to beg him for doing things to her. As an Inuzuka female, Hana was kind of submissive and urged for the male to take control of the situation and, surprisingly, Naruto did what she wanted. She could sense his animalistic treats such as the whisker marks being elongated and his teeth were now kin to an animal. Instantly, she ripped off his fishnet wearing underneath the jacket, exposing his ripped chest. Naruto for his part smiled and roared towards her neck, sucking it so hard that Hana felt his teeth almost piercing her flesh. It was exhilarating to say the least and Hana was loving every part of it. Eventually, Naruto's mouth went down and began sucking her well-developed breasts, earning a moan in ecstasy from Hana who in turn user her claws and began scratching Naruto's back ferociously. She was digging her claws, thus piercing some of Naruto's flesh, but he was too damn turned on to even think about pain.

It wasn't long until Naruto reached downstairs and Hana's eyes lost their color. Naruto's tongue was doing a number inside her inner walls, thus making her moan his name louder than usual. The pheromones being released by the two of them were unbelievable, but none of them seemed to care as Hana decided to reattribute the favor and ripped Naruto's black pants as well as his boxers, before grabbing it and sucking it for a while. Naruto grabbed her hair and was massaging It as Hana gave him a blowjob. From out of nowhere, Hana fell an immense feeling of ecstasy and her legs trembled. That happened only because Naruto grabbed through her hair and lifted her head in order for him to kiss her passionately while she used her hand and began massaging Naruto's cock. Hana was ecstatic about having an orgasm right away ad wanted more. She whispered for Naruto what she wanted to which the blond complied and positioned himself to take her from behind just like she loves to be handled. As Naruto entered inside her with force, Hana let out a scream of pain, followed by consecutive moaning of his name and begging him to grab her hair and pull it hard. Naruto did just that and for a moment, Hana's only thought was how wonderful it felt to be fucked from behind by Naruto.

A wonderful fifteen minutes later, Naruto's crotch was convulsing and he was already inches away from coming right inside of Hana. "Oh my god, Hana I'm Cumming" – Shouted Naruto before taking his dick off and ejaculate far away from getting the girl pregnant after one time having sex. After the whole thing, both Naruto and Hana returned to their former characteristics and both went to sleep on top of each other. Hana, however, couldn't sleep. She was so happy that her dream came true. Naruto wasn't only a nice guy, but also a strong shinobi and an awesome lover. He was perfect, she thought. Naruto for his part was also wondering what possessed him to lose control over his urges like that and looked at Hana only to see a smile on her face. **"Admit it; you've fallen for this girl. I don't blame you, the moment she scratched your back like that, it was the wildest thing I've ever seen. Anko and Kira were both nice but Hana was nothing of this world. I've never seen you use my powers for this type of situation and for her to be able to entice you that much, that only mean that she is one hell of a woman"** – Said Kyuubi and Naruto agreed with every word the fox said towards Hana.

* * *

**===the next day===**

After checking out of the room, Naruto and Hana were leaving the hotel side by side. Hana with her dogs in toll and Naruto already dressed as a hunter-nin. Naruto said that he received a mission from Tsunade-sama to head towards Wind Country and Hana told that she was supposed to head back to Konoha since her fake mission was to end today, so she would return in order to not arouse suspicions. However, when it came the time for both of them to head their separate ways, some force stopped them. Both Naruto and Hana didn't want to split apart just yet, but also they knew they had to. Naruto was supposed to arrive tomorrow at Suna and Hana was supposed to return to Konoha by tonight. "Naruto-kun, I know for a fact that I don't want to leave you once again, yesterday was one of the best days of my life and I wanted to pass more time with you, however we both have obligations as ninjas from the village." – Said Hana, earning a nod from Naruto. "Yesterday was surely fantastic Hana-chan. I wished I didn't have to leave just yet but the kazekage is expecting me. I want to give you something" – Said Naruto as he reached for his pack and pulled out a exclusive seal, before giving to Hana. "What is this?" – Asked Hana.

"This is a seal devised by Jiraya to communicate with me wherever I'm located. By pouring some chakra into that seal, someone from the toad summon clan will arrive for you to send me a message and that same seal will serve for me to send you one" – Explained Naruto, earning a smile, before Hana hugged Naruto. "I never thought that this could be so perfect Naruto-kun and I'll be expecting to hear from you soon. I'll place this as soon as reach my house. Train hard Naruto-kun, I want to be there waiting for you when you come back home. Meanwhile, I'll be writing to you and you'll be writing to me in return" – Said Hana, earning a nod from Naruto. "Travel with care Hana-chan and I promise to write to you" – Said Naruto, before Hana began making hand seals out of nowhere. Naruto asked her what she did and she smiled answering that she made a genjutsu for them to become invincible. "I want to kiss you one more time Naruto-kun" – Said Hana, before taking off the blond's mask and start kissing him madly.

After they broke the kiss, Naruto smiled and promised to schedule for more of their dates to which Hana gladly accepted and turned to walk away from him with a smile on her face. "I'll see you soon Hana-chan, you can count on that" – Shouted Naruto already with his mask on, before seeing Hana stop and turn to him, before nodding and saying that she will be waiting for his letter. Needless to say their future would be a bright one. Naruto, after Hana disappeared from view, took out his map and looked at which direction Wind Country was. If he speed things up, he could reach there tonight. Having already planned his route, Naruto returned the map to its place and vanished towards his destination.

* * *

**===Suna at night===**

The kazekage Gaara was finishing reading some documents when he heard a knock on the door. After allowing whoever it was to enter the room, a chunnin that Gaara knew was assigned for gate duty appeared. "Kazekage-sama, the hunter-nin from Konoha just arrived" – Said the chunnin, earning a nod from Gaara, before asking to send him in and call for Temari to come to his office immediately. The chunnin complied and let Naruto in the office, before closing the door, thus leaving the two alone to talk. "Kazekage-sama, I'm here on behalf of Tsunade-sama, the Hokage, how can I assist you?" – Asked Naruto, before kneeling on the ground, thus confusing Gaara as to whether or not Naruto was making fun of him by going through these unusual formalities.

"I have to say, it's weird enough to hear you call anyone –sama, but go as far as to be respectful it doesn't suit you at all, Naruto" – Stated Gaara, before seeing Naruto get up and laugh at his friend. "I just wanted to see your face that's all. It was indeed quite priceless to see the Great Kazekage showing signs of confusion. What can I do for you Gaara?" – Asked Naruto before Gaara answered saying that he will tell once Temari arrived at the office. While waiting, Gaara asked about the wind gathering technique and how far Naruto reached with this technique. Naruto for his part smiled and made some hand seals before extending his hand and begin gathering wind before he formed a energy ball made of wind, thus impressing the Kazekage. "I did believe you'd be able to reach this level of control, but please dispel the ball, I don't with for someone around here see you doing a suna technique" – Asked Gaara, earning a nod from the blond, before dissipating the technique.

Five minutes later, the door opened up and Temari entered the office, asking Gaara what was needed of her. "Temari, the hunter-nin from Konoha just arrived, please do explain our current situation for us" – Ordered Gaara to which Temari complied, but wondered why the guy is already here, seeing that he was only due to arrive tomorrow, however she waved it off since Gaara wasn't on high alert. "Okay, so the name of our guy is Mishimoto Kamizuki and as of now he is declared an A ranked missing-nin. So far, the man managed to cripple all of our hunters and yet no one knows how to defeat this guy" – Explained Temari, wanting to hear the man's voice about the subject. Naruto for his turn nodded at Temari and turned to Gaara to ask about the man's abilities. "Kamizuki is a master at using the wind element with one of Suna's top battle fans. Just a swing of it, he was able to send five of our hunter-nins flying. Not to mention that fuuton doesn't only enable creating hurricanes, but also enables the ability to slice objects and flesh, so it's important for you to be careful hunter-san. Since this mission is official Suna's business, Temari here will be escorting you and helping you find the man, who by the way won't make enough effort to run, since he's quite adamant to find someone to fight against. One and one last thing, this man needs to be taken alive, so killing him is prohibited" – Said Gaara, earning a nod from Naruto who in turn, agreed to leave first thing tomorrow morning and left to look for a hotel in town.

After he left, Temari turned to Gaara and wondered why her brother was smiling. "Are you sure this hunter can handle him?" – Asked Temari to which Gaara nodded and explained that this hunter-nin was special and decided to let his sister uncover the riddle for herself. Temari shrugged it off and left the office, thus leaving Gaara alone once more. The Kazekage returned for his documents, while satisfied that Naruto would get the job done.


	10. The stronger wind

**Chapter 10 – The stronger wind**

Once inside a hotel which happened to be located quite near the Kazekage's office building, Naruto took off his jacket and his mask, after closing the drapes, so as not to be seen. He didn't have anything to do other than maybe rest and take a shower, so he chose the latter. Every Suna hotel explained to their guests about the shortage of water supply and asked for them to not take long showers. Naruto wasn't one to disrespect, so he just took a five minute bath and changed his clothes to a more comfy, since he would be sleeping soon.

Suddenly, though, Gamakichi arrived and with him, was a scroll. **"Naruto, seriously, I know I agreed to do this for you, but I can't be your damn postman all day. Why did you give the seal to that girl?"** – Asked the toad, earning a small apology from Naruto who in turn, explained the reason behind allowing Hana to summon a messenger toad.

"**Well, from what you told me, I guess I can accept that. However, you'll have to do something for me in return" **- Asked Gamakichi to which Naruto nodded, since he knew the only thing his toad companion wanted and that was chocolate bars.

"From each letter you exchange between us, I'll buy you two chocolate bars, how is that sound?" – Asked Naruto, before seeing the red toad switching to thinking position for a while. While the toad was considering this, Naruto was thinking of how much greedy can the toad be, if four chocolates per letter weren't good enough.

"**I accept, since this is the first one, we'll begin our agreement at the second one she sends to you. Well, go on read it, I'll be waiting for your reply**" – Said Gamakichi before seeing the blond nod and open the scroll.

* * *

_Hello there Naru-kun,_

_I just wanted to tell you that I managed to place the seal accordingly and now we've settled our level of communication. Well, I wanted you to know how nice it was to finally be with you and I couldn't be happier. Plus teasing my little brother by telling I was seeing a hunter-nin and seeing his face of anger, really did a number on my stomach…I laughed for hours. _

_Also, I told my mother about our day (of course not all of it) and she was happy for me. She wanted to meet you, though she knows it won't be possible seeing as you're a hunter-nin, but she's very supportive of everything. _

_How about you? Where you are now? I'll wait for your reply. _

_Hana_

* * *

Naruto laughed a little bit at the image of Kiba acting like the protective little brother and snarling in anger once he heard about Hana dating Naruto. Picking up a blank scroll, he wrote back to Hana about his position and that he was hunting a new missing-nin that was last tracked near Suna. He also displayed his share of laughter at picturing an enraged Kiba, hoping also to read further teasing acts at Kiba. As to Hana's mother, Naruto wrote explaining that he never met Tsume, but he heard great things about her abilities both as kunoichi and as a mother from raising both his friend and the one he was dating right now. He finished the reply asking for a favor for Hana to supply the messenger with four chocolate bars, explaining that the toad was greedy and wouldn't do it for less.

He gave the reply to Gamakichi and appreciated for the help, before seeing the toad vanish. After that, Naruto went straight to bed and closed his eyes in seconds, before being transported to Kyuubi's mindscape, instantly. This happened every time the blond slept, as per Kyuubi's request. According to the fox, while the body would get to rest, Naruto's mind would be used as means to improve his training. Kyuubi used this method to introduce the concept of fire manipulation to Naruto.

* * *

**===Inside Naruto's mindscape===**

"**Took you long enough to come here, Naruto. I actually thought you'd take a while to write that letter to your mate"** – Stated Kyuubi, followed by a snicker as he knew Naruto would be hard pressed not to say anything after he used the word 'mate'.

"What the hell are you saying ero-kitsune; we had only one date, it's not like we're going to settle down or anything"** – **Explained Naruto, though he was surprised that he was questioning his own words right now. At first, the girl was nothing but aid in a mission to capture one of the missing-nins, however when she appeared next, wanting to meet him, Naruto felt something different.

The fox, seeing his jailor in deep thinking, could only smile in return. However, the reason of Naruto being here was for the training of the boy's mind. Aside from teaching the blond to get stronger and more powerful, Kyuubi happened to possess a wide-scale knowledge regarding shinobi aspects. Also, as a hunter-nin, Naruto would be some times, required to deal with an opponent in a different way than blunt force and using jutsus and Kyuubi had the perfect topic in mind to teach Naruto.

"**Ok Naruto, stop wondering about Hana and let's focus on a topic I want you to learn. It's called pressure points" **- Stated Kyuubi, earning an eager nod from Naruto who took a sit on the ground and looked up since Kyuubi was quite big. **"****A pressure point in the field of martial arts refers to an area on the human body that may produce significant pain or other effects when manipulated in a specific manner. By knowing where to hit other than simply hitting the opponent, you can either cause pain beyond measure or even immobilize a certain area of the opponent's body. You'd do well to remember your fight against that fake hunter-nin Haku a while back, right?"** – Asked Kyuubi to which Naruto nodded.

"**So, Haku used needles and placed them at specific parts on your body in order to incapacitate your body movements. Also, remember when he put the Uchiha traitor on a false-death state by placing one needle at a precise point right below the neck. As a hunter-nin, you'll be required to have this knowledge as it will be an advantage in the future, now to learn where the pressure points located are, you'll need to memorize what I'm about to explain to you, because although no human is the same as the other, the pressure point's location remain the same…**" – Explained Kyuubi as he began to drill information inside Naruto's head as to the many places to strike and if possible, teach the blond about the use of needles.

* * *

**===the next day===**

When the sun rose, Naruto immediately felt its warmth and woke up, while holding his head from the immense headache he was feeling right now. Learning pressure points were hard but not impossible to learn, however when Kyuubi changed the subject to teach the blond the art of using needles to hit precise target points, the blond wished he could've shut both body and mind to keep him away from the huge pile of information that was battling to make space on his mind. Quickly dressing his hunter-nin attire and the mask, Naruto left the hotel room, before suddenly, he was face to face with his company on this mission, Temari while holding a basket of breads of different types.

"I was hoping you wouldn't be late to leave the room Hunter-san, I thought I'd get to hold this bucket for hours" – Said Temari, earning a nod from Naruto. _I wonder if Gaara put her up to this or is this some weird way of Suna displaying their hospitality for Konoha. _– Thought Naruto as he accepted the bucket of bread and placed his mask sideways in order to eat the bread and to keep his identity safe to the girl.

"**I would suspect that she did this in ways of getting you on the sack later...he he he"** – Laughed Kyuubi while inside the blond's head, earning a sigh in dismay from the blond, who actually thought that the damn fox was satisfied after his 'meeting' with Hana. _Not now, damn fox. _

"Temari-san, I have to admit I feel a little bit humble from having the sister of the Kazekage, serving a no-one like me some breakfast. I wonder about Kazekage-sama's intentions" – Asked Naruto, not entirely sure what to make of this type of situation. Surely, Gaara was on to something with this and Naruto was too much frightened to think his long-time friend might be setting up something between him and Gaara's sister.

"Beats me, Gaara just asked me to assure you had a nice time in Suna. I didn't know what he is planning with this, but since he is the Kazekage, I guess I didn't have a say in the manner. Well, since you had your breakfast hunter-san, we should get moving fast. We are at the tempest week of the month, meaning that we'll have to avoid quite a lot of hurricanes before reaching the end of the desert" – Explained Temari to which Naruto nodded, before wondering why the girl said the part about leaving the desert.

"Where is he located? I thought he was residing within Wind Country?" – Asked Naruto with clear annoyance as he crossed the forsaken desert needlessly.

Sensing the man's frown, Temari assumed he was rather angry from having to cross the desert without any need to it, but she explained that a recent recon mission returned with Mishimoto's real location and he is currently residing within a small village near River Country. "If we travel faster, we'll take a day and a half to cross the desert and one more day to reach his location. I don't think he would move from that position as I'm sure he spotted our recon team, so he will logically assume we still didn't give up the chase. It will be up to you to face him and render him unconscious. Think you can live up to the task?" – Asked Temari.

Naruto for his part frowned but his reaction remained the same. In the end, it will all be decided on who has the stronger wind.

"I won't intend to give you an answer before I get to face the man in combat. Nevertheless, if Suna's best couldn't fight him, then I'll be hard pressed not to believe his wind abilities to one of the best in all of the elemental nations. In the end, the battle will be decided on who got the stronger wind between both of us" – Explained Naruto, before seeing a nod from Temari who couldn't help but agree with the hunter-nin's words and be silently impressed.

She knew a fair amount of her village's hunter-nins going as far as to date one in the past. All of them, with close exceptions, became arrogant with their abilities, stating that no matter how much dangerous the enemy could be. This hunter-nin, though gave her a realistic answer, while also, telling her that he, also, possesses a wind affinity.

A while later, Naruto and Temari left the hotel and went directly towards the city gate. After presenting the documents of the Kazekage's mission, thus registering Temari's exit towards a mission. The Kazekage created a system that would allow him to know who was inside the village and who was out, also pinpointing how much time it would take for the ones out on missions to return to the village. After clearing everything, Naruto and Temari stood towards the direction of River Country throw the desert and Temari used her hand to point to a certain direction.

When Naruto looked, he was surprised to see three hurricanes side by side as they danced along the desert in the northeast position. "We need to feel when the wind shifts its direction. After it, we'll have close to thirty seconds to get as further away as possible from the place, before the hurricane is formed. We'll need a lot of chakra to travel as fast as we intend to as well as dodge the hurricanes" – Explained Temari to which Naruto nodded, before both of them charged towards River Country.

* * *

**===In Konoha===**

One of the deep and dark places of Konoha, where no man, in their sane mind, would want to be right now was the Anbu torture and interrogation department led by Konoha's interrogator Morino Ibiki. There was a reason for this, because the man's methods rivaled no one. Brutal, but efficient, Ibiki could either make the interrogated spill all his life or drop dead from not being able to hold the pressure for long. Countless people came here and all of them ended up spilling their entire lives to the man. However, one man was different. Takara Shinobu was brought in for questioning by orders from the Hokage from suspicion of being a rat for Akatsuki. According to the man's file, Kakashi and a chunnin named Sai followed him for a while, before discovering that the man was sending information to a man named Pein, which happened to be the Akatsuki's leader.

The problem was linking this man to his leader, Danzou. Below a two-way mirror, three people laid there discussing the next course of action. Kakashi, Tsunade and Ibiki were trying to figure out what they could discover about this man and what information did he pass to the organization. "I've encountered tough subjects to crack, Tsunade-sama, but none of them is anyway similar to this one. It's like Danzou transformed him into a mindless individual" – Said Ibiki, after explaining that methods that rely on emotion wouldn't be effective against someone emotionless.

Both Kakashi and Tsunade nodded at the Tokubetsu interrogator, indeed when Sai first came to their lives, he was similar in every sort of way. Emotionless, just with the mission in mind and nothing else; it took Naruto's attitude to change Sai's behavior into turning friends with both him and Sakura. However, if this man truly has no emotions, then Ibiki wouldn't be the best candidate for this interrogation. His method relied on messing the man's mind, pretty much destroying them to get the information Konoha needs.

"Ibiki, who would you consider for replacing you with this guy? If your reports are true, then we would need a different approach" – Asked Tsunade earning a nod from Ibiki who in turn begun to think for a while.

"On the spot, I would consider my sensei Yamanaka Inoichi, he could get inside the man's mind without the need of torture/interrogation, however I don't know if it would work, because the Yamanaka clan jutsus rely on a cooperative mind and it might me dangerous if Sensei were to try against a man trained by Danzou...I will regret to say this, but we are in need of a more 'physical' approach" – Explained Ibiki, earning a look in wonder from both Kakashi and Tsunade, before Kakashi flinched instantly.

"Another interrogator in my department has a different kind of approach which relies in the body. While one without emotion, he has tact and is not immune to pain. The one I'm thinking about uses pain as a method for extracting the information she needs. Her range of options begins with kunais to poisons that could kill a man in seconds" – Stated Ibiki, earning a sigh in dismay from Kakashi who in turn knew who said woman was.

Tsunade, for her part, looked at the man and issued to call her, pretty much clueless as to the woman's identity. Ibiki nodded and vanished for a couple minutes, before bringing his companion.

"Tsunade-sama, I brought the interrogator as per your orders" – Said Ibiki before seeing Tsunade look at him, before her eyes were bigger then saucers. _ANKO!!!_

* * *

**===At Konoha's hospital===**

At the hospital, Hana was there visiting Kurenai. The woman was already nine months pregnant and she felt something strange upon entering a market so she rushed to the hospital, only to discover it was a false alarm. However, seeing as Kurenai could have the baby any day now, she chose to remain at the maternity section of the hospital for the duration of her little Asuma's birth. Linked with Kurenai's belly, was a tube that would send the signal for the doctors and tell them when the baby would be born.

As for Hana's conversation, she was telling Kurenai everything about her date with Naruto and how wonderful it turned out to be. She told about how much he looks like the Yondaime added with some feral whisker marks and she told about the conversation they had together. The juicy part of the whole thing was, of course, omitted from fear of increasing Kurenai's hormones, but she told her the rest of their little vacation. Kurenai was indeed happy for both Hana and Naruto, but slightly concerned for her once student Hinata. Even though her confidence risen a bit, when the topic of Naruto came, she would be that same academy student once again. However, seeing that neither Naruto saw this occurring nor Hinata reached him to say it, so it was like it never happened.

"I'm glad that you managed to find someone Hana-chan. Before Naruto-kun, none of the men you dated turned out to be dating material and I remembered you telling me that one even tried to harm your dogs" – Said Kurenai, expressing her concerns to Hana and be glad that Naruto treated her nicely.

"Yes, those were bastards, but not him. Naruto-kun has something with him that you can't help but fall for. You and I agree that his life growing up was horrible and yet, seeing him that day showed me that, instead of taking revenge of the people who wronged him, he understood their pain. In his exact words, he said that his knowledge about hardships in life became subjective, even though no one had to deal with things they didn't cause and that he knew for a fact that people have their own nightmare to think about so it wouldn't do well for him to show everyone how it was for him growing up" – Explained Hana, at the same time, smiling at her friend from being able to meet the real Naruto.

Kurenai and Hana remained talking about Naruto for a while, before the visiting hours were done and she had to go home. Kurenai appreciated Hana for taking her time to visit her, but the Inuzuka chunnin dismissed it by saying it is a pleasure to be of company, before issuing her a goodnight sleep.

Once outside, Hana headed towards her house to get her well-deserved sleep. She remembered sending that message to Naruto and leaving the house not wanting for the reply. She had to go to her office because of an early emergency. However, as he walked casually towards the Inuzuka compound, she remembered her conversation with her mother right after her date. To say Tsume was surprised it was an understatement, at the time when she saw Hana bouncing up and down in joy, she wondered about the date and what happened for her daughter to be so happy.

It took Hana a couple of minutes to explain and Tsume's smile was from ear to ear upon seeing this kind of happiness resurface once again. When Hana was only a genin, the girl was mostly hyperactive and happy while playing with her dogs. However, one event changed that and Hana, after, changed. It was not a negative change as ninja are required to face stressful situations and learn how to cope with it, but Hana's attitude towards things in general changed and she was now reserved. After that date with Naruto, Hana was happier than Tsume could remember and It certainly brought a motherly smile from Tsume.

Back to Hana, she just saw her house on the horizon and immediately began increasing her pace while being followed by her triplet huskies.

* * *

**===At the Inuzuka compound===**

After arriving at the Inuzuka compound, she saw a note at the table from her mother saying that she had to leave for a mission with Kiba for a tracking mission towards Iwa and wouldn't arrive for another three days. Returning the note on the table, Hana got to feed her triplets before going to her room. Once inside, she saw the seal and was happy to see a scroll next to it. Upon opening it, she began to read Naruto's reply to her letter.

* * *

_Hello there Hana-chan,_

_I'm currently in Suna as a request from the Kazekage, hunting one of their missing-nins. Don't ask me the reason for my presence here; I guess Suna's hunters aren't so good or something. _

_Also__, thanks for supplying me with material to tease Kiba in the future, I was able to picture his pissed looking face and I wanted to ask if you could supply me more of these type of situations. _

_As to your mother, I'm afraid I've never met her before, but I've heard great things of her abilities as the top Inuzuka as well as a great mother for raising both Kiba and you. Anyway, I hope to meet her in the future. _

_I enjoyed our date a lot and I also hope that you could get some getaways from Konoha for us to do it again, the date I mean. _

_I look forward to meeting you once again Hana-chan, take care. _

_Take care once again, _

_Naruto_

_PS: Oh could you do me a favor? The messenger toad you summon is quite a greedy bastard, so he will require a reward for the messages. Could you, perhaps, buy four chocolate bars to give to him, I don't know where to find them and I can't just go anywhere. _

* * *

After Hana read it all, she snickered a little bit and remembered that Naruto was born a prankster, hence why he enjoyed reading about Kiba being teased. The final part of the letter was a bit odd, but if Naruto asked her to buy some chocolate bars, it wasn't so hard. Hana didn't know much about toads, but seeing that Naruto knew them, Hana wouldn't question it. She was surprised at what he said about her mother, being the top Inuzuka and a great mother and it only added to things she liked about him. She knew that Naruto was an orphan since birth and must, often, imagine what his life would be if his parents would be alive.

* * *

**===At the Anbu torture and interrogation department===**

Ibiki, Tsunade and Kakashi were watching Anko's method of torture and Tsunade actually thought her hemophobia was resurfacing once again. Anko proved to be quite a vicious woman as she injected Takara with enough poison that his skin was beginning to burn like acid, but yet the man was still holding his tongue. Blood was all over the man's body and a few drops fell on Anko's coat, but she wasn't one to lose to this guy.

Back behind the windows, the three watchers were almost quitting their attempt on linking the man to Danzou. This Takara person wasn't human, he felt no pain. Nothing they attempted on him was enough for the man to stutter the information. Instead, the only sound that left his mouth were paining sounds and laughter as a way of mocking the interrogators.

"I'll give one last shot before you'll meet the shinigami, asshole. Tell me who do you work for, you peace of shit" – Shouted Anko, before once again hearing the man laughing at her expense, angering the woman greatly. Grabbing a kunai, she charged at the man with the sole intention of stopping the weapon near the man's neck and so she did, but with no avail. The man didn't show a hint of fear, just instead kept looking at her while laughing once more. Seeing this, Anko sighed in dismay. She knew of a rat inside the ranks that was working for Akatsuki, reporting to them about Naruto's position, so she wanted to help. Naruto was the one responsible for bringing the only family Anko still has and she wanted to do something for him, but this man was hard to crack (make it impossible).

"Well, you'll die in a couple of minutes, anyway. At least if we're not able to take any information out of you, we'll be satisfied to see you convulsing in pain, before falling limb on the floor. It'll be real nice, you know, all the blood spattered around, you limp body on the ground, bleeding" – Said Anko, before turning her back on him and headed back to the room.

Once inside, she looked at those inside and sighed in dismay. She actually thought the man wouldn't be able to resist the n number of poisons she injected through his veins, but to her and everyone present's dismay, the Anbu Ne agent was tougher than all of them thought. "Ibiki, Anko, we need this man alive...give him the antidote and lock him up, we'll have to come up with different methods of persuasion" – Said Tsunade as she turned and left the premises.

Anko and Ibiki nodded and went inside the room as Kakashi vanished with a shunshin.

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

Naruto and Temari made a small camp and Naruto was just observing a panting Temari as he pretty much swallowed her food without even wasting time in chewing. The two of them crossed the desert while escaping the hurricanes, but at the cost of terrible tiredness at least on Temari's part. Naruto, though, was unscathed and even his breathing was irritably normal. The woman thought about getting mad at him for not being at all tired while she was on the verge of collapsing from tiredness. The two of them crossed the entire desert in less than a day and managed to escape what Temari referred to be the worst hurricane week ever. While they managed to escape one that was forming, another one would form immediately at the place where they would soon be, obliging them to use chakra on their feet the whole time.

In fact, the only reason Temari didn't collapsed from lack of chakra was because of her rather large reserves (at least high enough for a jounin kunoichi). After finishing her plate, she looked at the masked hunter-nin in front of him and tried to study him for a while. Along the way, he didn't show any hints of displeasure which could be caused by either high chakra consumption or heavy strain in his leg muscles for using them so much as they did. He was just doing this as he was a highly experienced suna ninja who crossed the desert way too many times. She was also curious to the fact that her brother Gaara knew the man even though he was wearing the mask the entire time.

Naruto for his turn certainly appreciated the trip. Wind was his element after all he used the already existing wind in the atmosphere to move faster, thus avoiding the hurricanes without resorting to using much chakra. He considered Temari's angry look at him and wondered if she thought of taking advantage of the wind force around the hurricanes, but seeing that she was deadly tired, Naruto guessed not. "Temari-san, I would advise you to get some rest for tomorrow. Don't worry I'll take the night's watch" – Said Naruto, before hearing a faint snort from the blond suna kunoichi.

"Don't you dare think of me as weak hunter-san, you don't need to take the full night's watch; I'll rest for four hours and then I'll cover the area while you get to rest" – Explained Temari, before looking at Naruto as in daring him to say otherwise.

Naruto for his part didn't mind it one bit, but also he would refuse to bring himself to argue with an angry kunoichi, specially seeing how much of a temper she has. So Naruto just nodded and shunshined within a small typhoon and instantly appeared on top of a tree nearby. Temari once again snorted at the guy before heading towards her tent.

Once he saw Temari entering the tent, Naruto sighed in dismay upon seeing that he was stuck with this troublesome woman for the duration of his little mission.

"**You know, there are tons of things you could do to ease her up, I mean you and I can feel the pent up energy she was releasing. I bet she doesn't get any of it back home"** – Said Kyuubi, earning another sigh from Naruto.

"I really thought you'd quiet down after what me and Hana did, but I was sadly mistaken, I guess once a pervert always a pervert" – Mumbled Naruto as he made a couple of kage bunshins and settled them towards key positions around the camp, so that they would be able to alert the real one in case of an enemy present.

"**Well, although Hana is one fine piece of meat, you'll have to admit that this Temari person is also just as nice...plus, as to your thoughts, I'm pretty sure I explained to you already that monogamy is not my thing"** – Stated Kyuubi, before seeing Naruto agreeing with a nod.

"Temari is the Kazekage's sister and I know that any man who even looks at her the long way would have to face his sand...I guess he's over-protective." – Said Naruto, as the conversation continued for a while.

When Naruto's time ended, he dropped of the tree and went to the tent to call Temari. He could simply forget about the plan and just remain watching but he had a gut feeling that a proud and stubborn Kunoichi would like this at all, so he went to wake her. After some time calling her name and no answer, he opened the tent in order to see if the woman was sleep or something. However, the sight was very funny as Temari was not only sleeping, but also drooling. _Well, I guess she would be even angrier if woke her up. _– Thought Naruto before going back to his tree to remain the night watch.

* * *

**===the next day===**

Slowly opening her eyes, Temari found it strange that the first rays of sunlight reached the tent. The hunter-nin was supposed to wake her up for her time watch, but instead he never did. The nerve of that guy, she snarled in thought. Grabbing her fan, she stormed out of the tent, only to see the hunter there seating on top of a tree log making some morning stew. "Good morning Temari-san, I hope you like stew for breakfast, it's the only thing I can do right now, slept well?" – Asked Naruto, though he knew that the woman would want some explaining as to why he didn't wake her in the first place.

"Bastard, why didn't you wake me up? I thought we agreed to have shifts" – Asked Temari, though a part of her was thanking the man for not waking her.

"I tried to, believe me. I called you up a few times and then when I saw you inside the tent, you're pretty much drooling in your sleep. I figured you're too tired from the trip, so I just returned and let you sleep. Besides, if I did wake you, you wouldn't be able to rest at all, thus being a hindrance when we find the missing-nin" – Explained Naruto, though waiting for Temari to be pissed at his commentary, but then he saw her face expression becoming more relaxed which meant he ended up doing her a favor. It was after she came willingly and sit next to him, that he realized that what he did, ended up being beneficial to her in the long run.

Had she took her shift at night, she wouldn't be at her best against Mishimoto. Being a jounin at such an early age always spoke highly of Temari's skills both in Suna and Konoha. Her fuuton abilities rivaled only the elite and she was well in her way of becoming a master at her own element. Being that said, it would be quite a blow to her pride if she was beaten by Mishimoto because she wasn't able to have a full night rest. After picking a bowl that was offered by the hunter-nin, she drank it like a soup. While not as good as home cooked meal, Temari found the stew to be quite tasty on his own right and asked the Hunter-nin.

"Being on the streets for so much time pretty much forces you to depend on yourself. So, anything from supplies, food, water and the likes you have to gather on your own. I had to learn how to cook because if i were to eat at public places, I would draw too much unwanted attention for myself, plus the fact that if I were to eat in restaurants, I'd have to go after A to S ranked enemies and that is something I'm not prepared to do yet. Eat up and then we'll track Mishimoto" – Said Naruto to which Temari nodded and drank the rest of the stew, before asking for more.

A while later, Naruto and Temari arrived in River Country in hopes of finding the bastard. Naruto was cursing Temari's presence because he couldn't summon Gamakichi to aid him from fear of the girl discovering his identity and ruin everything. So, it ended being his hunter-nin tracking skills and Temari's information of Mishimoto to track the guy. According to Gaara, the guy urged for a challenge so it was likely he wouldn't waste time in hiding or even using genjutsu to hide his presence from others.

The village was sparse at best, some local villagers were found taking care of their agriculture. It wasn't as crowded as in major villages, so both Temari and Naruto would be able to simply spot the man they are looking for. The description was easy to follow, just see a man with a giant iron fan on his back. Mishimoto's appearance didn't stand on the crowd, so it would be down to finding the big fan and hope for the best.

It didn't take long and they reached the end of the village, although no sign of a man carrying a giant fan on his back. However, just before the two turned to get back and search for more, both of them sensed the shift in the air current and jumped on instinct. Their action proved to be the right one as just after they jumped, a huge gust of wind passed through the area, sending everything in its path flying. Just as Naruto and Temari landed on top a little oak house, they heard the man's voice.

"Huh I'm honored to have your presence here with little old me Temari-sama. I was hoping Suna sent someone more worthy of fighting me and they sent you, how disappointing. Maybe, the Kazekage is being mad or something? That or he's too scared to come himself and deal with me, personally" – Said Mishimoto as he fully opened his fan and eyed Temari's companion. "Ah, look what we have here, a hunter-nin from Konoha. I've got to tell Temari, it seems the Kazekage is really desperate to plead help from Konoha with an intern affair. Doesn't matter, though, you two will add up with the number of fools that become victim of my battle fan"

"**Man, this guy don't stop talking, my ears are hurting already, let's show what we're made of Naruto"** – Said Kyuubi within Naruto's mind, earning a nod from Naruto who in turn asked for Temari to stand aside.

"What are you talking about? You can't hope to beat him alone, I'll help" – Shouted Temari, earning a nod in the negative from the hunter.

"The Kazekage called me for a reason Temari...It's my mission to deal with him. I prefer to fight my enemies alone, so don't interfere unless I'm done for" – Said Naruto, before he took his sword and charged Mishimoto with speeds that astounded the Suna jounin.

Mishimoto, though, wasn't easily fooled by speed alone and did a strong swing of his battle fan, thus increasing the gust of wind and sending towards Naruto, who jumped out of the way, before looking at the man for a while. _Because of the battle fan, i'd assume he is a long-range fighter so it wouldn't be wise for me to charge straight at him. My approach would have to be different and I know just the way. _– Thought Naruto as he channeled a bit of Kyuubi's chakra, before making the hand seals.

**Katon Karyuu Endan **(Fire Release: Fire Dragon Missile Jutsu). Instantly, Naruto expelled from his mouth a thin layer of white fire towards the enemy before the fire became stronger. Mishimoto cursed at the fire technique and used his battle fan to create a wind diversion to make contact with the fire attack and explode. After the contact was made, smoke filled the area and Mishimoto couldn't see a damn thing. Right now, he knew the hunter-nin's plan to come closer by creating some smoke, but he realized too late as Naruto was already on his side with his sword on his hands, attacking.

The man wasn't known for his close-ranged skills so much, but a lot of enemies tried to take him from close-ranged, only to be killed afterwards and the hunter-nin wouldn't be an exception. Mishimoto used his battle fan in order to block Naruto's sword swings to the best of his abilities, before doing a back-flip and doing another swing with his battle fan for the technique **Fuuton Dai Kamaitachi** (Wind Release: Great Whirlwind Jutsu). Suddenly, Naruto saw in front of him, a huge mass of small wind swords ready to cut all over his body. Molding his chakra fast, Naruto managed to make a barrier of wind around him, thus escaping from the incoming slice attacks that would kill him for sure.

Immediately, Naruto made some hand seals for **Fuuton Kaze no Yaiba **(Wind Release: Wind Sword Jutsu) and threw it at Mishimoto, who did a back-flip and avoided the attack.

"I'm afraid I misjudged your abilities hunter-san, not only do you possess a fire affinity, but you're also proficient in fuuton ninjutsu. That's quite rare to occur, since they are opposites" – Said Mishimoto as he remained with his battle fan prepared for a new swing, while watching Naruto's actions. The blond for his part, used his speed and within moments, was right in front of Mishimoto, not even giving time for the man to use his battle fan to keep the distance. Naruto figured that if he remained close enough, Mishimoto wouldn't be able to use the devastating fuuton attacks. Using straight taijutsu this time, Naruto was able to land some blows to the man's stomach, before flipping in mid-air and landing a nice roundhouse kick on the man's face, thus sending him flying.

Naruto was about to make the hand seals for a fire technique when he saw the man using the momentum and flipping his body in mid-air, before using **Fuuton Daitoppa **(Wind Release: Great Breakthrough Jutsu) straight at Naruto. The blond was taken by surprise and was hit dead on, before sent flying towards the trees. Mishimoto smiled at yet another ruined attempt of Suna to kill him and turned to Temari now for the second round. The hunter-nin managed to inflict some damage to the man's muscles, but he was able to use his swing, since Temari wouldn't come close-ranged from being the same type of fighter as him.

"So Temari-san, you and I have the same style of fighting, so it would only seem fair to settle this by seeing who's got the stronger wind, wouldn't you agree?" – Asked Mishimoto, before seeing Temari snarling in response. The woman was at awe from seeing the hunter-nin's abilities and actually hoped that he would take Mishimoto down, but when she saw the Daitoppa sending him flying, her hopes were gone and now she had to fight this man.

Just as Temari was about to use her battle fan, she heard the hunter's voice.

"I thought I made myself clear when I said that you're not to intervene unless I 'm done for Temari-san. This man is my prey, so if you step away and let me handle him, I appreciate it" – Said Naruto as he appeared next to Temari with his arms crossed.

Mishimoto for his part wondered why the hunter was still alive after being sent flying with astonishing speed to the forest nearby. By looking at him, though, Mishimoto couldn't find a single wound on his body.

"You're quite smart and took me by surprise, but I won't happen again, I assure you" - Said Naruto, before taking his sword once more and vanishing straight at the opponent, who pretty much dodged the sword swing by pure instinct. Mishimoto was astounded to see that the speed doubled and couldn't follow the hunter-nin. _This is bad, if I can't see him, that means he can sneak close and deliver the killing blow, I'll have to resort to using more chakra for my techniques and hope to keep him at a safe distance_.

Naruto didn't waste time and after the missing blow, he charged once more and attacked Mishimoto who had to place his battle fan in front of the sword so as not to be sliced in half. However, he left his side open, which is why Naruto took the advantage and flipped his body, aiming a strong and chakra channeled kick straight at the man's stomach, before sending him flying. Mishimoto struggled even to breathe as the air left him. Also he could hear the sound of ribs breaking hence how his body was aching now in numerous places.

Naruto stood in front of the man as he was using his hands to hold his stomach in a failed attempt of stopping the pain. Naruto's kick injured him so badly; the man was struggling to even get up. "Don't bother trying to get up, Mishimoto. I ended up hitting one of your body's pressure points that happened be located within the middle of the stomach, the abdomen. This sensitive area, when hit with chakra, sends immeasurable waves of pain through your whole body, thus hindering its movement from fear of over-exerting your muscles. How does it feel to be like this, useless against an enemy? I'd gladly kill you now, but I'm not allowed to do so, hence why I'll send you to unconsciousness, sweet dreams" – Said Naruto, as he placed two fingers just below the man's right ear into a certain position on the man's neck. The man instantly closed his eyes and fell limb on the floor.

* * *

**===At Suna===**

Inside the Kazekage's office, two days later, both Naruto and Temari were in front of Gaara reporting the success of Mishimoto's capture, thus pleasing Gaara greatly. "Congratulations on a job well done, Temari you're excused for the time being. Hunter-san I'd like to talk to you for a moment" – Asked Gaara to which both nodded and Temari left.

"Pressure points, Naruto? Please explain" – Asked Gaara, earning a nod from Naruto who took his mask off and looked at his friend.

"It was the only way to subdue the bastard without killing him, I'm afraid. I'm still learning the art, but I was already able to locate one and hit it. Mishimoto doubled in pain the second he landed on the ground" – Explained Naruto, earning a nod from Gaara who in turn, wrote the letter to Tsunade explaining the whole thing and sent it to Konoha via one of his personal messenger hawks.

"So, where to now? Do you have a next target in mind?" – Asked Gaarato which Naruto nodded and showed Gaara the picture of his next target.

"The man's name is Hitaro Matsuyama and was a jounin level ninja by the time he fled the village after stealing some money from Konoha's vaults. I'm heading to Tea Country and look after him" – Said Naruto, earning a nod from Gaara who handed him the bingo book.

"Well, then, thanks once again for your help and I hope to hear from you again some other time" – Said Gaara to which Naruto nodded and vanished, only to appear on top of the Kazekage's tower, looking towards his next destination as the sun was just setting for the day.


	11. Pit stop

**

* * *

****Chapter 11 – Pit stop**

**Beta: Dreetje**

* * *

It was a scorching hot day in Bird Country and nature was taking advantage of it. The plants used the energy of the sun for their feeding and animals would be at the river hunting for fish. It was a pretty quiet day, except for a few distant noises of metal clashing against metal. Suddenly, a small yet increasing in size fireball could be seen coming towards the once peaceful river. The animals scattered away as the little fireball pretty much tripled in size. One human wearing a mask looked at the attack's destruction before turning back to his opponent.

It was now close to six months since Naruto managed to defeat Mishimoto, Suna's missing-nin with the aid of Temari and now here he was at the verge of eliminating the last one of the B ranked list. The guy's name is Katsu, yes a fitting name for the insane fire techniques he uses and Naruto was cursing himself for not knowing any Suiton jutsu to counter the damn imbecile. His Fuuton jutsus were unusable as they were weak in comparison to Katon and his own Katon techniques doesn't even come close to the man's ability with the element, so the only advantage Naruto had right now was the extra chakra capacity and his physical abilities which were twice as better than six months before.

"Well hunter-san, it appears we are at a stalemate. I can't hit you with my techniques and you can't come any closer. Now, I know better than to underestimate the hunter-fox while in battle as I know many did in the past and ended up in a body bag." – Said Katsu to which Naruto looked at the man, trying to seize him up. The name hunter-fox was earned after one of his pray that managed to escape from his clutches for a while. Naruto managed to capture him in the end, but not before he managed to spread the word that Konoha had a new hunter-nin that was slowly extinguishing the bingo book.

"**Naruto, I know you're just waiting for his chakra to vanish, but that won't happen, his control is very good for that. We will have to use that technique" – **Said Kyuubi, earning a sigh in dismay from the blond. He knew the fox was right, but the technique he referred to was never attempted before in the midst of battle. Not to mention that the technique's after effects would cause a lot of damage to Naruto's skin. However, since Kyuubi managed to heal him in the end, he guessed the worst it could happen is immeasurable pain. _I know I'll regret this later on, but here goes. _

Charging chakra to his feet once more, Naruto vanished in thin air and charged against Katsu with a direct attack. Katsu immediately began his share of hand seals before gathering as much air as he could before releasing the **Katon Dairyuuka no Jutsu **(Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Jutsu). Immediately, a huge fire dragon appeared and charged against the hunter-nin who breathed a little bit, before focusing on the tiger seal for his new technique called **Katon Enkou no Yoroi **(Fire Release: Flame Armor Jutsu).

Immediately, Naruto focused some of Kyuubi's chakra through his tenketsu and expelled it from every tenketsu, thus enveloping his body with flame, before facing the dragon head on. Katsu couldn't believe what this hunter-nin did and believed for a second that he had a death wish. Didn't matter, though, as with the hunter-fox now dead, not only himself but the rest of those who no longer belonged to Konoha could go on with their lives without being hunted. However, just as he turned his back to the onslaught, he suddenly felt something piercing his neck. It lasted only one second and Katsu was dead.

Naruto's body was burned all over and his clothes had gone up in ashes. The pain slowly ebbed away, but the blond couldn't help but grind his teeth in annoyance as Kyuubi was using his chakra to heal the burning. _God, I hate this jutsu, remind me why I created it in the first place? _– Thought Naruto, earning a snicker from the fox living inside of him.

"**For these type of situations, maybe? Or maybe, you became a sadist since you left that pitiful village, so you decided to harm your body at the worst way possible? Either way, you finally managed to finish the B ranked section of the book. The A ranked ones will be much more powerful than those you fought thus far. I'd suggest you take a little time to train and maybe even acquire a third element to use in case we run into someone with a stronger element than yours, like either Suiton (water) or Doton (earth). I happen to know more about Doton techniques, so after you're able to manipulate the element, I could teach you"** – Explained Kyuubi, earning a sigh in dismay from the blond.

Naruto took a scroll from his holster and summoned some clothing for him along with a new mask. Naruto, at one point, thought best to order an extra set of clothes and one new mask in case he ran into situations like this one. _I have to thank Hana-chan for purchasing another outfit for me, without it I'd be naked and resort to use a henge until I reached a store that sold leather jackets."_ – Thought Naruto as he remembered Hana. They had spend some time together and slowly but surely they had gotten to know each other very well.

In six months, though a long-distance relationship, Naruto and Hana managed to improve their relationship greatly. They were now secret boyfriend and girlfriend with a handful of people knowing about it. Tsunade, Jiraiya and Kakashi from his part knew of the relationship and on Hana's part, Tsume and Kurenai also knew. They chose to keep it a secret since apart from those mentioned before; no one except for the Jounin knew where Naruto was and what he was doing. Also, the hunter-fox earned quite the reputation in six months and Hana would be top on the list for his enemies. Even if Hana was now stronger than before, since she started training under her mother again, there was no reason to advertise their relationship and endanger her.

Also, Hana would on occasions, request some C level recon mission towards somewhere so that she could meet with Naruto from time to time in order to catch up and well, do stuff.

"**I remembered the last time Naruto. You were quite the animal back then, I seriously thought she would pass out from her orgasms!"** – Said Kyuubi, once again being a pervert making Naruto snort. In six months time, the Kyuubi proved himself even a bigger pervert than Jiraiya and that was almost impossible, Naruto thought. The blond decided to ignore the fox since if he acknowledged him the fox would find a way to transform his answer into something perverted.

Looking at the corpse of the last B ranked member, Naruto did the old ritual of severing the man's head and sealing it into a scroll along with a message to either the Hunter-nin Commander or the Hokage, before summoning Gamakichi and asking for the head to be sent with Naruto's regards. After so much time killing, the act itself no longer affected Naruto that much. Of course, the bad feeling was still there, but it didn't stop him from doing it for the sake of duty. Thinking of the word duty, Naruto wondered about his life. Truth be told, Naruto only killed those who deserved it, but that didn't diminish the blond's feeling that perhaps all that he knows to do , now, is how to kill. Other missions like escorting someone, protecting a caravan, sending a document, became somewhat of a strange concept for the blond.

The blond remembered sharing his thoughts with his girlfriend once and even remembered her concern. She was worried that in time, Naruto would get used to killing. That he wouldn't even feel the difference any longer. He even remembered reading a letter from the Hokage expressing the same concern, also offering a quick vacation for him if he so wished to.

"**If you wish to continue this path without worrying about the consequences, than a vacation is not such a bad idea. You've been killing people for over a year now and while such number don't bother someone like me, you on the other hand, would snap in time. Stop for a while and return to Konoha. The missing-nins won't simply vanish from this existence, there will be a lot of time to hunt them down"** – Said Kyuubi, earning a nod from Naruto who, then, remembered the very reason he left his village in the first place.

_How can I come back with the Akatsuki coming after me? I'm much stronger than before, but I still can't face them in battle. Also, I would be jeopardizing the village's safety by doing so_ – Thought Naruto, earning a sigh in dismay from the fox inside of him.

"**Naruto, I don't know if you forgot about the fact that your weights were still on when you faced Katsu meaning, that without them, you could very well give one of the Akatsuki quite a run" **- Said Kyuubi.

The blond was surprised upon hearing this since he admitted that he didn't remember wearing the weights. However, the thought of becoming that strong was hard to grasp.

* * *

**===At Konoha===**

Tsunade was in her office writing up some paperwork regarding some orders to be sent to the Anbu corps. It had been six months since Naruto's mission towards Suna and not a lot had changed since then. The prisoner didn't show signs of telling his connection with Danzou, but according to Jiraiya, the information was now worthless since the Akatsuki stopped following Naruto's false trails. At first, the blond Hokage was worried for her surrogate little brother, but as Jiraiya and judging from the number of heads she received, she thought Naruto could give the organization quite a run. She was worried, though, about Naruto's welfare as a hunter-nin.

The number of kills was astonishing and Naruto even surpassed the hunter-nin commander in eliminating in number of pages from the bingo book. However, it was the toad Gamakichi that warned her to Naruto's mood changes. The toad told her, once, that while Naruto's expression was visibly affected after killing someone, now he didn't even flinch and the killings were even more professional than before. Two weeks ago she offered him some vacation, but Naruto insisted that he didn't need one.

She knew he wouldn't like the idea of returning to the village and attracting unwanted attention from the Akatsuki. _Honestly, I'd like him to come back now. Most of the Konoha 12 have become Jounin by now and would be a valuable aid against the enemy. Of course, by now, Naruto is as strong as them if not stronger. _– Thought Tsunade as suddenly the all familiarized smoke filled her office, announcing the arrival of Gamakichi. Normally, the toad would arrive with a sour mood because of Naruto's behavior, but strangely, the toad was smiling.

"**Tsunade-sama, Naruto brings the last of the B ranked section"** – Said Gamakichi as he handed the scroll to the Hokage. Normally, finishing the entire B ranked section of the bingo book was a remarkable feat for a hunter-nin, but Tsunade didn't like to celebrate the fact that Naruto pretty much became a killer.

"Why are you smiling Gamakichi?" – Asked Tsunade, now a little suspicious of the little toad.

"He left you a message, Tsunade-sama. Everything is right there." – Smiled Gamakichi as he handed a letter to the Hokage, who opened up and began to read.

* * *

_Hello there Baa-chan, _

_It's been a while since we've got to talk about things other than me killing missing-nins and I know you're worried about me. I guess I got a little too obsessed with getting stronger and ridding Konoha of its enemies. However, I'm afraid something is going to happen should I continue on this path, chances are that I snap. I guess you were right in the end Baa-chan. _

_I was wondering, though, if that vacation offer was still up? After a two-week vacation, I could perhaps return to run the A ranked section of the bingo book. I'm waiting for a response here baa-chan, can I return to the village for two weeks?_

_Love_

_Naruto_

* * *

After reading it, Tsunade wrapped the scroll up and looked to the window of her office for a while. She couldn't take the smile off her face after what she read. She didn't have to force him to come back; instead he chose to do so. The blond Hokage couldn't help but see wisdom in Naruto's words and wonder how much Naruto had changed since he left Konoha. Actually, she was relieved since awhile ago, Naruto's fake mission came to an abrupt ending when Akatsuki stopped following their false leads and turned to look for Naruto on their own. If Akatsuki managed to find him, they would surely capture him and god knows what would happen to the blond.

Another advantage of Naruto's return would be that those damn brats from his graduation school would stop pissing her off with their never ending questions about when he would return from his mission with Jiraiya. Tsunade remembered, one time, when she smashed her fist on her desk after both Sakura and Ino barged in demanding to know about Naruto. Surely, the two girls were now a bit reluctant to even talk to the blond Hokage, but at least, she found some peace.

Picking up an empty scroll, she wrote an authorization letter for Naruto to come home and take a full two week vacation, before handing it to Gamakichi who hadn't stop smiling since he got here.

"Gamakichi-san, I guess we won't see each other for a while, so take care okay?" – Smiled Tsunade, to which the toad nodded.

"**You too Tsunade-sama, finally Naruto showed some senses, I was beginning to worry about him. All he ever thought about was to fight and kill. I'll deliver the message right away."** – Said Gamakichi, before vanishing in a puff of smoke.

Tsunade, afterwards, relaxed in her chair while drinking a cup of tea. Sure, Naruto's return managed to relax her and she was picturing the blond just taking his mask off and greeting her Naruto style. Unfortunately, every time she tried to relax, someone would always come in and piss her off.

"Thinking about me, Tsunade-hime? Well, I'm sure you can't help it, though. No one can resist my charms." – Boasted Jiraiya as he entered through a window on the left corner.

"What are you doing here Jiraiya?" – Asked Tsunade, clearly not wanting to be bothered more than she already was.

"Well, I saw Gamakichi here and thought that you had news on my student, but from your smile, I can see you got what you wanted him to do?" – Stated Jiraiya, earning a smile and a nod from the Hokage who threw him Naruto's letter. The old pervert caught it and opened the scroll and turned to read it. Afterwards, he closed and looked at Tsunade with a smile on his face. "I'm sure that fool Gaeshi doesn't even realise that Naruto managed to beat his record twice in a row. Well then, since he's coming back, guess I'll stay and see him, I wonder if the bathhouse is already occupied…." – Wondered Jiraiya out loud, before seeing the incoming punch on his face. Sadly, though, Tsunade was far too fast and far too powerful for him to do anything, so he was sent flying throughout Konoha.

_Damn pervert…._ – Thought Tsunade as she returned to her chair and took another sip of her tea.

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

Naruto was walking towards an inn he found on his way back to Konoha. He received the message from Tsunade saying that she was glad he saw reason in stopping for a while and that she, happily, granted him his much needed vacation. However, it was already getting dark and the blond didn't see reason in speeding things up. That being said, he rented a room for the night, now under his real name as per Jiraiya's instructions. Since Akatsuki stopped following his false leads, Jiraiya communicated with him telling that they would be out looking for the blond right now. The pervert advised Naruto on using both his name and the hunter-fox name, since Akatsuki would follow him instead of the hunter-nin. If the Akatsuki were to find out about Naruto's new profession, the blond would have to retire from said duty and return to being a Genin once more.

Thinking about it actually made Naruto laugh. Because of his job, he had to kill a whole list of Jounin level ninjas and to think that his official rank is 'Genin', the blond couldn't help but laugh out loud at the idiocy behind ranks. Nowadays, attaining a certain rank in a ninja's life was pointless to him. Of course, he would think like that, seeing that he was a Genin and yet, he managed to kill Jounin.

"**Yeah, could you imagine were you might be if you didn't choose to become a hunter-nin. If there was one thing I truly detested it was seeing you getting your ass kicked all the time. Thankfully you decided to put your chakra abundance to good use and train for real. Now, sign that damn registration book under your real name and let's get some sleep. I don't feel like looking at your face any longer than I need to."** – Said Kyuubi, before he saw Naruto smiling, thus sensing an imminent little funny remark from the blond.

"Love you too furball…" – Said Naruto, before smiling upon hearing the Kyuubi's snort.

A couple minutes later, he was laying on a comfy bed. He wondered what he would do once he arrived in Konoha. Visiting a few selected people was a must in his agenda. Hana wanted to get him to meet her mother, but because of his job, he was never around the village and being a clan-head, Tsume wouldn't leave the village unless for diplomatic relations and even so, Konoha wouldn't send an Inuzuka to negotiate. Although being rather level-headed, Tsume did have a hot temper just like any Inuzuka and could say something that would cause quite a situation. So, instead, Naruto pictured that Tsunade would send someone who also came from a highly clan, but also had knowledge on how to be a politician.

He continue to think about and and decided that he would of course visit his girlfriend and her mother. Hopefully, Kiba won't be there as it could become a problem. His sense of smell could alert him to Naruto's presence and his plan would be shredded. Naruto remembered that Kurenai was expecting her son when he left and he remembered Hana mentioning about little Asuma on one occasion, so he thought about visiting her as well. Others like Iruka, Kakashi and Tsunade were obvious since they were family to the blond. He even remembered to pay a visit to Anko and Kira since it's been far too long since he saw them.

Another thing that he wanted to do was to invest in real-state. With his money, he could afford to acquire a few houses in Konoha and then placing them out for rent. Apart from the hunter-nin income, he would have a second source of income to aid him in the future. Also, he would look for a nice new apartment for him to live, since the one the Sandaime Hokage gave him was becoming rather small for him.

Now completely under covers, Naruto closed his eyes and let his dreams take over his wonderings. However, something would soon happen that wouldn't let him enjoy those dreams.

A few miles away from the very hotel where he was staying, two men; one bigger than the other, wearing black cloaks with red clouds were approaching the inn. Their source informed them that one Uzumaki Naruto just checked in a hotel in Fire Country so they decided to follow the lead and see where it would lead them. When the rat inside Konoha stopped sending them information about Naruto's whereabouts, the group decided to pursue the last bijuus on their own. Still, it was clear that the leader wasn't so fond of said information as he chose to vent out his frustrations inside a cave that now is pretty much nonexistent.

"Itachi, are you sure the brat is where he is supposed to be? I mean, we've been following him for some time but with no avail whatsoever" – Complained Kisame as he walked side by side with the Uchiha.

"I have a suspicion that Jiraiya of the Sannin aided Naruto in escaping from our clutches all those times, now it appears that Konoha sent him on a solo mission. I wouldn't do such a foolish thing as to underestimate a Jinchuuriki, even if said Jinchuuriki is Uzumaki Naruto. After we arrive be prepared for any eventual traps" – Advised Itachi, earning a snort from Kisame who , in turn, just replied saying that anyone who came after him would have to face his sword.

It didn't take the two long to reach the hotel and they were already in front of the door room.

However, this time it wouldn't be so easy. A few minutes ago, Naruto awoke because what he felt nearby. He didn't know who those presences were, but one possessed a large supply of chakra. Naruto could hear their steps as they stopped in front of his room, before knocking on the door.

_What do you think Kyuubi?" _– Thought Naruto as he saw the fox deep in wonder for a while.

"**It appears the pervert's plan worked. You don't have to be afraid of them knowing your hunter-nin identity. I'm afraid, though, that you must come up with a plan to escape, maybe stall them for a while…" **- Stated Kyuubi, earning a sigh in dismay from Naruto who actually berated himself from missing the over-stoic Uchiha and the big sushi Kisame. _Well, let's pack my stuff and get the hell out of here. _– Thought Naruto as he dressed into another set of clothing, so as not to attract suspicion.

Upon opening the door, Naruto fainted surprised and looked at the two with his eyebrows frowned.

"Uzumaki Naruto, you are to come with us right away. Willingly or not, that's your choice" – Said Itachi, before Kisame took his sword off and positioned to strike at moment notice. Naruto, though, smiled and made his most popular hand seal. Itachi sighed in dismay at the blond's attempt of engaging them. "I'm very disappointed in seeing that even after training under a Sannin, you still rely on such a pathetic battle technique" - Said Itachi, seriously wondering why Naruto's smile never let his face.

"You know Itachi, for an Uchiha you sure open your mouth a lot…and the interesting thing is that only dog shit comes out of it…**Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu **(Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu)" – Shouted Naruto and immediately, thousands of Naruto's emerged around the three. Suddenly, all of them vanished, thus making Kisame and Itachi vanish as well, trying to follow the real one. Once outside, the duo looked at the extensive army of clones smiling at them. Just as Kisame was about to make fun of Naruto's abilities, the duo heard the word 'scatter' and cursed the heavens for the blond's inhuman chakra amount.

Naruto devised this strategy to be able to escape without getting noticed by the organization and truth be told, he didn't expect his plan to work. When the clones left the hotel, the real Naruto left as well, but in the direction of Konoha. The clones, though, created small groups and left in all directions at once. Kisame wanted to shred the brat to pieces. Itachi, on the other hand, was impressed at the boy's quick thinking.

_Huh, he used his chakra to create that many shadow clones, than he told them to scatter to different directions, providing enough distraction for the real one to slip by and leave unnoticed. Very smart Naruto, I must admit I underestimated you, but that won't happen again_ – Thought Itachi as he went back to Naruto's room to see if he left something worthy of some information.

Naruto, however, was long gone and headed straight to Konoha. Travelling at night was considered a risk for all those who had even one shinobi lesson for obvious reasons. For once, the visibility would be seriously reduced and the chances of falling into a hidden trap are very high. Naruto, though, didn't need to worry as when he uses the fox's chakra; his visions become enhanced, thus aiding him in his travel. Right now, Konoha would be two to four hours away from his distance; quite a long trip to do without resting, but Naruto didn't have such luxury as Itachi could follow his trail and end up capturing him in the long run.

"**By the way, nice trick back there, it took quite a chunk of your chakra, but I guessed those pompous bastards didn't see that coming. Head straight to Konoha and we'll be safe"** – Advised Kyuubi, earning a nod from Naruto as he maintained a steady pace towards the village that he left more than a year ago. _I wonder how much Konoha changed since they no longer saw the demon lurking around their path, maybe they created a new festival to celebrate some false rumor that I was killed somehow_ – Thought Naruto, before he heard some snicker from the fox within him.

"**I don't know why you take up with those damn idiots, but hey…just know that I would do things a little bit different"** – Said Kyuubi, before hearing Naruto laughing.

"Yeah, kill them…." – Laughed Naruto as he continued down the path towards the village.

* * *

**===With Itachi and Kisame===**

Back with Itachi and Kisame, the sushi man was just dealing with the clones who surprisingly, at least to him, weren't putting much resistance to the Samehada's swings, if not at all. However, Itachi knew better than their intention was only to provide distraction for the real one to leave unnoticed, so it wouldn't do well for them to risk being dispelled in accident and maybe, prolong the time needed for Naruto to get away.

"Kisame, you needn't worry about the bunshins, they won't attack you…His plan worked. We lost him because we underestimated his abilities, but it won't happen anymore, let's go" – Ordered Itachi, earning a snort from the shark man who strapped the sword on his back and followed Itachi.

"Do you think he was expecting us?" – Asked Kisame as he was walking alongside the older Uchiha.

"Something is odd about this whole event. Normally, Uzumaki Naruto is rather narrow-minded, thus acting with recklessness. His choice of words was surprisingly accurate and his face expression didn't change once. Something is different in him, I'm sure of it. Also, something only an Uchiha can know is that the blond was looking at my feett at all times in the midst of our conversation as if he was aware that without eye contact, the sharingan's abilities are seriously reduced. Perhaps, it would be best to not underestimate him in the future Kisame" – Explained Itachi, earning a contemplative nod from his partner.

"It seems, also, that his chakra capacity has increased otherwise he wouldn't be able to make such a high number of clones. He must have received some kind of training from that Sannin" – Wondered Kisame. Itachi, though, was wondering about the whole ordeal. It was too calculated to be one of Naruto's tactics. _For someone once very readable, you've become yet a new mystery Uzumaki Naruto, let's see if you manage to escape our clutches once more_ – Thought Itachi.

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

After two hours of travel, Naruto stopped for a while and looked backwards to see if either Itachi or Kisame were following him. To his surprise, though, he felt neither chakra signature approaching nor anyone nearby to suggest a trap. Naruto wondered if his plan worked, but by the looks of it, it seemed Itachi and Kisame didn't bother following him. Naruto wasn't stupid, though, and began to process the future from now on, regarding Akatsuki. He knew his identity couldn't be revealed at least not outside the village and certainly, he would only show where both him and the fox attested the safety. Naruto concluded that he would try to continue Jiraiya's counter-intelligence by creating a Kage Bunshin to wonder around in a complete different direction than he is heading. This way, the Akatsuki would follow the clone once more, while he dressed as the hunter-fox, would go around and do what he does best…killing people.

"**Can't the pervert do this for you? Although one Kage Bunshin is not much, maintaining him for a couple of hours takes a lot of energy" **- Advised Kyuubi, but Naruto dismissed the idea the same instant.

"Sure, I could ask him to do it, but what good this will do to me in the long run? Will I ever be able to fully protect myself without him" – Snorted Naruto, earning a sigh in dismay from Kyuubi.

"**While you're hunting 'A' ranked shinobi, those who wishes you dead are S ranked, thus they are Jiraiya's level. I agree that depending on him is not a good thing in the long run, but at least with him, you could be better protected in case you faced them" – **Explained Kyuubi as he saw Naruto rest his hands on his chin in a thinking position.

"I'll talk with him, see what he thinks of the idea. I can't just simply ask for him to do it without at least explaining myself. Upon our arrival, we'll talk to him" – Said Naruto, before he focused some chakra and jumped high above the trees, before landing on a next set of logs which would propel him to another.

It didn't take too long until Naruto was right in front the great walls that surrounded the village. Normally, a huge sense of nostalgia would hit him like a train in full speed, but this time it was different. Maybe, because truly he didn't want to come back or maybe he felt that something would go wrong the minute he stepped inside the place he once called home. The spot he was in was secluded from any patrols that Konoha ninjas would make so he could stare at the walls all day, without a single soul knowing he was there. However, signs of tiredness soon reached him and he needed to rest as soon as possible. Wondering about his tiny apartment, Naruto immediately jumped towards the wall and within seconds, he was on top of the wall as he looked at the place he once called home. The village itself was dark as the night, but that wasn't surprising considering how late it was.

He looked at the direction of his house and immediately jumped towards the next available rooftop. Even though Konoha was sound asleep, at night Anbu shinobi were responsible for guarding the village so the chances of getting caught were high, even though his stealth improved greatly over the year. Jumping through rooftops, Naruto suddenly dashed to the ground and hid in a darkened corner, before looking up to see three Anbu members arriving at the very spot he would be in, if he hadn't dropped to the ground.

_Konoha is tougher to break in than Suna, I'm close to my house, now – _Thought Naruto as he saw the Anbus leave the place, before getting out of the darkened corner and using pure speed towards his home. He couldn't use chakra seeing that the Anbu would be on high alert if he did so. After hiding once more, Naruto managed to reach his building and jumped straight to his apartment. Looking at the door, though, he wasn't surprised as 'sweet' messages were written there by a kunai. _Glad that you're dead demon and You are where you belong_ – Read Naruto, before chuckling a bit. In the past, he would squeeze his hands in fury and try to swallow the pain, before putting a false smile. Now, however, Naruto found it amusing that the civilian population in Konoha thought he was dead, because he simply disappeared from view.

"**And you think it's a good thing, why?"** – Asked Kyuubi from within the blond's consciousness.

"Not good, just amusing to think that if I decided to appear to them, their face would be as white as a ghost and probably believe I came from hell for revenge. However, as much as I appreciate a good prank, my presence here must remain a secret, until I manage to settle some matters. However, I will, first, get some rest." – Said Naruto, before picking his key below the carpet in front of the door and opening his apartment. Upon entering, he saw the room was dark, but he didn't need to switch the lights on to see that someone took care of his apartment for him. There were sheets covering his furniture in order to prevent the dust from accumulating and Naruto's nose could pick the smell of soap, meaning that whoever did this did a complete service. Walking around a bit, he found his bed and took off his clothes, before getting to rest.

He didn't have the luxury of sleeping for long, simply because of the fact that the one who cleaned his apartment could show up and see him inside, thus knowing he was back in Konoha. _Kyuubi, could you wake me up tomorrow at eight. I'll go find a new place to buy with the money from the hunter-nin business and I have to leave the key where I found it, otherwise the person will know I'm here"_ – Said Naruto deep inside his mind, earning a grumbling nod from Kyuubi.

"**How can you be sure it's not your mate doing this?"** – Asked Kyuubi, before seeing Naruto thinking for a while.

"I don't think she would bother to do this, unless she knew I was coming to Konoha. I have another hunch and if I'm right, then letting her know I'm back would be such a troublesome situation to deal with and quite frankly, I don't want any more complications than having to explain to each person that I know, the actual truth behind me leaving the village. Do you think they know of my reputation?" – Asked Naruto, earning a snort from the fox.

"**The name hunter-fox was given by someone who was killed by you a few hours after he managed to escape from our clutches, I doubt he managed to spread the word about you"** - Stated Kyuubi to which Naruto smiled and nodded.

"Yeah, well I'll go to sleep, remember to wake me up."

* * *

**===The next day===**

Waking up at the designated time, Naruto left his place immediately and left the key where it belonged. He was curious as to who would go inside his house and clean up, so he left a single Kage Bunshin and told him to hide in a place where he could see his apartment's front door. The Bunshin immediately vanished, before the real Naruto started walking towards some place to have breakfast. Usually, Ichiraku's would be his choice number one, but the fact is that he couldn't be there, unless he wanted to drop out of the hunter-nin program. So, he settled for entering in a bakery store and asking for some bread and butter served with coffee and milk.

Afterwards, Naruto walked throughout Konoha, in order to find some place that sells newspapers. Naruto wanted to find a suitable new place for him to stay and maybe purchase another one and put it out to rent, thus having a second income. After walking for a while, Naruto found a few people he recognized like Lee and Gai doing their morning routine. _No matter what horrors I see, those eyebrows scares the crap out of me. _– Thought Naruto, earning an acknowledging nod from Kyuubi, who also wondered why they have to be so damn big. A couple of Chuunin and Jounin he came to know upon his stay in the village were conversing about some Suiton techniques, it seemed and Naruto wondered about what Kyuubi said about a third element to learn aside from Fuuton and Katon. If he could choose, Suiton (Water) certainly wouldn't be his choice. It wasn't for the fact that he didn't see it as deadly or at least useful, it was just that its use was limited to having a nearby water supply in order to be used and in Naruto's line of work and water couldn't be found so easy.

"**Suiton Ninjutsu is only strong against Katon, since it's dominant over fire, but that doesn't mean Doton techniques aren't useful against Katon Ninjutsu. Not to mention, that the one dominant over Suiton techniques is Doton Ninjutsu"** – Advised Kyuubi, earning a nod from Naruto who thought about learning some Doton techniques, just in case neither his Fuuton nor Katon Ninjutsu works.

Walking around for a while, Naruto found the book store and purchased today's newspaper. Naruto had to admit he wasn't that much into reading at first, but when he managed to learn all those Fuuton techniques from the library, he began to see books in a new light. This was the first time he bought a newspaper, but the weird thing was that the vendor didn't snarl at him called him demon. _Oh yes, right. I'm wearing the hunter-nin mask. Of course, something was wrong with the man's attitude, now let's see what we have here. _

Naruto flipped the newspaper and found a page reserved for ads. People wanted to sell their products to others, so they placed their offers at the newspaper simply because a great number of people would be able to see it. Naruto was searching for someone that happened to be selling some apartments, so that he could visit them. After looking for a while, he hit the jackpot. One add showed that a business man from Sea Country happened to leave the village and was in need of selling three apartments that he owed in Konoha.

Looking at the address, Naruto immediately began walking towards the place, before he saw a woman using her hair like two buns and wearing some Chinese outfit. Naruto admitted he didn't know much about Neji and Lee's teammate Tenten. He knew she was a weapon specialist because of the mission to rescue Gaara from Akatsuki, but other than that, the woman was pretty much a stranger to the blond. Shrugging it off as in not important, Naruto looked in front of him to see the building that the apartments were located. Seizing it up for a bit, Naruto appreciated its design and also the peaceful neighborhood. According to the add, the man's offer was 350.000 ryou for the three apartments. Naruto knew he had this much to spend, but at least he would try to lower the price to the amount of a hundred thousand ryou each, totaling three hundred thousand ryou.

Upon arriving, Naruto knocked on the man's door, before the door opened, showing a rather tall figure, wearing a black suit and smoking a cigarette.

"Can I help you with anything?" – Asked the man to which Naruto nodded.

"Sorry to bother you sir, but I happen to see the add you left in the newspaper and I'm interested in making an offer for the three apartments" – Explained Naruto, earning a smile from the man.

"Oh why didn't you say so? Come in, I'll show you around, call me Rinji, please" – Said Rinji, before ushering Naruto inside. "All three of them have two bedrooms, one bathroom, a nice kitchen and a living room to die for. Normally, I wouldn't be selling them, but due to some personal matters, I'm obliged to return to Sea Country. I see you were a mask mister, are you one of those Anbus that I happen to see roaming through the village?" – Asked Rinji, before seeing Naruto nodding in the negative.

No, my mask is different from those the Anbus wear. I happen to be a hunter-nin, ever heard of said position?" – Asked Naruto to which Rinji nodded.

"Sure, I had. You guys travel outside the village and hunt the respective village's missing-nin, but I heard that is quite a lonely job. I mean, how do you cope with depending only with yourself?

"After a while doing it, you get accustomed to, I'm afraid. Well, regarding the apartments, all of them have decent pluming and illumination, correct?" – Asked Naruto, before seeing the man nod his head, before continuing. "Great, I like this one, I can see you took good care of it" – Said Naruto, earning a smile from Rinji.

"So do we have a deal? I believe I stipulated in my add, the amount of three hundred and fifty thousand ryou for all three of them, do you accept?" – Asked Rinji, before seeing Naruto looking at him.

"I wish to close the deal with you, but I only have available with me three hundred thousand ryou and I'm ready to make a direct deposit to your bank account instead of trying to pay in parcels" – Offered Naruto, before he saw the man think for a while. It was a nice offer, he thought so himself. The market price for each of the apartment was slightly above what the masked one offered and truth be told, the man would profit either way.

"We have a deal, then. I purchased these apartments four maybe five years ago and I managed to get a good price on them at the time. I settled at 350 thousand ryou at first, because it happens to be a business tactic. The more you ask, the more you can reduce and still be able to profit. I'll give you my bank account and all the property documentation regarding these three apartments. Wait right here while I'll go and get them" – Said Rinji to which Naruto nodded, before he went to one of the rooms and grabbed the respective documentation.

After he returned, he handed the document to Naruto, before giving his hand to Naruto as in wanting to close the deal by shaking heads. Naruto saw no harm done in all this and shook the man's head.

"Great hand shake, strong, powerful; it speaks highly of a man with these qualities. Here is the necessary documentation and the number of my bank account. Unfortunately, my bank is in Sea Country and tax laws states that after the wire transfer is complete, the one who receive the income will have to pay a certain value, but don't worry I've got credit with the bank for compensation purposes. Congratulations, you just purchased three nice apartments….ah how can I call you…I know you guys have a hidden identity" – Said Rinji to which Naruto nodded.

"Just call me hunter-fox, that's the name I'm known for these days" – Said Naruto, earning a smile and a nod from Rinji.

"Ok then Hunter-Fox, I'll have to go talk to Tsunade-sama and request some shinobi to protect me on my trip back to Sea Country, after all, security is a priority today" – Smiled Rinji as he opened the door to Naruto, after he locked from the outside, before giving the three keys to the blond.

"It was nice doing business with you Hunter-Fox, I hope you enjoy the apartments, see ya" – Said Rinji, before he turned and walked away.

A few hours later, Naruto managed to get all the technicalities of the deal behind him as he made the wire transfer to Rinji's account. Upon looking at the bank document that contained the amount of money he had right now, Naruto began to do some calculus. The B ranked section of the bingo book rendered a lot of income to Naruto and he was now considered a millionaire. The word 'was' because he just purchased the apartments, so now he had nine hundred thousand ryou in his bank account.

The next priority would be stopping by the place where he acquired his katana from. He needed to reload his supplies for the future, so he would go shopping. Immediately, arriving at the shop, he saw the man that sold his sword as he saw Naruto as well.

"Greetings customer, how can I be of service today?" – Asked Akido, slightly suspicious of the sword strapped on this customer's back.

"Greetings Akido-san, I'm back to have that repair on my sword the **Furiseirei** (Free Spirit)" – Said Naruto, waiting until realization struck the man.

"Well, well Naruto-san, it's good to see you once more, I see you became a hunter-nin, that's great. Not many shinobi choose this line of profession, why don't you show her to me and we'll see what we can do to restore her" – Said Akido, earning a nod from Naruto who took off the sword from his back and gave to Akido. After the man took the sword off its holster, he smiled and admired the level of care Naruto showed for the sword. In over a year, the metal presented some small signs of cracks, but nothing that someone of Akido's abilities couldn't fix.

"The sword has some fissures here and there, but I can fix it, it will take some time, though. I'm out of metal right now but it will be arriving tomorrow morning, you can pick them up in two days from now. Are you in need of anything else?" – Asked Akido to which Naruto nodded and picked a little notebook from his jacket.

"I have a little list of things here Akido-san, can you write it down, it's kind of a extensive list" – Said Naruto as Akido, smiling, grabbed a notebook of his own, before Naruto began the list. "Five hundred kunais, five hundred shurikens, one hundred windmill shurikens and one hundred demon shurikens; ten boxes of needles and a dozen storage scrolls. Also I was hoping you had some exploding tags as well, if possible close to fifty" – Said Naruto, before he heard Akido whistle in surprise at the amount of stuff.

"Not that I'm complaining or anything Naruto-san, but it's a very extensive list you have here, why do you want so much?" – Asked Akido.

"When you're out there alone, you create some vices that happen to be impossible to cure. For me to just buy ninja supplies outside Konoha makes me go edgy and I expect a trap of some kind. By purchasing more in advance, I save both time and my neck in case of someone trapping me. Can you set all of what I asked for when I return to pick my sword?" – Asked Naruto to which Akido smiled and nodded.

"I see what you mean, these vices as you called it can save your life in the future. Now, as to the products, I'll have them ready for you when you return, now wait right here while I'll settle the total price" – Said Akido, earning a nod from Naruto who began to walk around a bit and once again admire the many weapons that were stored in Akido's store. The man had everything and more and surprisingly, enough, all weapons, both projectile or not, were shining which meant that Akido took great care of the items.

A few minutes later, Akido returned with the price.

"So Naruto, it will be thirty five thousand ryou for everything, you can pay me when you come back next time, I'll have everything ready for when you return" – Explained Akido, but Naruto said no and insisted on paying the man right away. Akido appreciated the money and placed the order on his list for two days withdraw, before ushering Naruto goodbye. Naruto greeted the man goodbye and turned his back ready to leave, before turning once more.

"Akido-san, I'd like to ask a favor if I may?" – Asked Naruto, before Akido nodded and he continued. "Maybe this is another one of those vices, but until I come back, please do not mention to anyone that I'm in Konoha or that I'm a hunter-nin. I'm not talking about you, but rumors spread like crazy in this village and, then, my cover would be blown for sure. Could you do that for me?" – Asked Naruto.

"Of course, my friend, you can count on me for that. You surely have your reasons so I won't ask. Come back in two days and I'll have everything settled for you" – Said Akido, before Naruto smiled and nodded to the man.

* * *

**===Two days later===**

After picking up his order, Naruto stored everything in one of the storage scrolls and left the store, thanking Akido once again for everything. After that, he left towards the library where he would do some research concerning Doton manipulation. Naruto decided to give the Ninjutsu a try, since it would come in handy against tougher opponents in the future. In minutes, he was already inside the place and searching for some books concerning the material. After looking for a while, Naruto managed to find them:

* * *

_Introduction to Doton Ninjutsu for those who don't have the necessary affinity_

_Low-Level Doton Techniques and mud manipulation_

_High-Level Doton Techniques_

* * *

Naruto picked them from the shelves and went to one of the tables inside the library. Naruto's objective wasn't to leave the library already knowing everything there was to know about the subject. He would copy all the relevant information from the first book he picked and would choose two to three techniques from each one of the two last books in order to learn them. Naruto remembered the message he sent to Jiraiya, explaining that he was already inside Konoha, but wouldn't appear to anyone until he was ready to do so.

**Flashback on**

Yesterday, after leaving his sword to be repaired, Naruto was standing on top of the Hokage Monument, sharing the view that the passed hokages had of the village they sworn to protect. He knew he would have to inform the pervert that he was already inside Konoha, so he began to write a message to Jiraiya.

* * *

_Hi there pervert, _

_I'm writing this to inform you that I'm already within Konoha's walls. The reason as to why I didn't show my face to any of you yet was that I needed to handle some personal matters first. If you feel the need to tell Baa-chan about this, feel free to do so. However, if you see a vein popping on her forehead, explain that I'll appear in no time and for her not to worry about me. In case there is an emergency, you know how to reach me. _

_See ya._

_Hunter-Fox_

* * *

After closing the scroll, Naruto summoned Gamakichi once more only to give the message to Jiraiya. Of course, the toad complained since he was on his vacation, but complied in the end.

**Flashback off**

Immediately, Naruto used his pencil and begin writing all the necessary information on another scroll.

* * *

**===At the Hokage's office===**

Sitting behind the Hokage's mahogany desk, Tsunade was feeling the urge to tear the furniture into tiny little pieces. In front of her, was Jiraiya with a serious expression on his face.

"So what Jiraiya, are you telling me that he is suspicious of his own home? Of us as well? Is that why he is doing this?" – Shouted Tsunade, but Jiraiya could only nod.

"He developed some vices I believe while being a hunter-nin, Tsunade-hime. The message didn't say much about what he was up to, but you know as well as I do, that in time, hunter-nins become suspicious of their own shadow for cry's sake. Don't worry, though, he'll come see you when he's ready to do so. It's not like he left the village for no reason, you know? Also, If Akatsuki was to learn that he's here, then they'll come and everything he did to keep them away from this village would have been for nothing." – Explained Jiraiya, before seeing a sigh of dismay from Tsunade.

"I'm afraid you're right, Jiraiya. Damn, imagining Naruto being paranoid is as hard as seeing Orochimaru suddenly having a conscious crisis. Did Gamakichi say anything about him?" – Asked Tsunade, but Jiraiya nodded in negative, explaining that the toad merely handed him the message and left, while grumbling about stupid blond ruining his vacation, earning a smile from Tsunade. "He'll come see us in no time, Tsunade-hime, be sure of it" – Said Jiraiya, earning a nod in confidence from Tsunade.

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

Soon the night approached and Naruto managed to finish everything he needed to learn about Doton manipulation. Of course, he knew that because Kyuubi was telling him to write down what he thought was important to the blond. The blond even got to write down five techniques to learn regarding Doton manipulation.

**Doton Doryuuheki **(Earth Release: Mud Wall Jutsu)

**Doton Doryuudan **(Earth Release: Mud Dragon Projectile Jutsu)

**Doton Ishihassha **(Earth Release: Stone Catapult Jutsu)

**Doton Tsuchi no Yoroi **(Earth Release: Earth Armor Jutsu)

**Doton Jishin **(Earth Release: Earthquake Jutsu)

After grabbing everything he needed, he placed the books on the respective shelves once more and left the library towards his new apartment to sleep. Tomorrow, he would show up at the Hokage's office


	12. Hidden Intentions

**

* * *

****C****hapter 12 – Hidden Intentions**

**Beta: Dreetje**

* * *

It was yet another beautiful day in Konoha as the first rays of sunlight illuminated the village. Being located in Fire Country, Konoha was used to hot temperatures in the summer and normal temperatures in winter. Now, in the village there were those who appreciated waking up early for the sake of enjoying a full day and, of course, those who hated because they wanted to enjoy that extra 'five minutes' to sleep, which actually becomes at least an hour and a half.

However for one person, having time to sleep meant lowering his defense and doing such would result in death, hence why Naruto was already up when the sunlight adjourned his features. Actually, Naruto was found on top of the Hokage's Monument like he remembered doing the same thing a long time ago. It seemed strange, but the only view he missed from the village he once called home was the one from the top of the Yondaime's face. No matter what happened his life, just sitting on top of the Yondaime calmed him down like no place would.

Naruto was so hypnotized by said view of the village that he forgot to pay attention to the one living within him, who understood why Naruto's feeling of nostalgia manifested in the first place. The fox wouldn't speak to his jailer about it any time soon, since, to tell the truth, he didn't feel like it. Let the other monkeys do this when they as hell see reason in telling for the fox's sake.

Back to Naruto, he got up and got to see his old house in the horizon, before remembering that it was Sakura who cleaned up every now and then. The memories assaulted him as he got take a look at his ex-teammate. She had grown that's for sure, her hair was a little bit longer and Naruto was surprised she was wearing a standard Jounin attire.

Hana once told him that most of his class mates became Jounin nowadays and he was the only Genin left. Not that it mattered, though, as in the end it was all up to who would be holding the kunai straight through the other's heart. One of the things that occurred during his time outside the village was that Naruto would explain his reasons by using analogies related to killing the other.

Looking around the village once more, Naruto recognized the Inuzuka compound and he couldn't help but smile upon thinking of Hana once more. Picking up a scroll, Naruto decided to alert Hana before hand not wanting the bloodhounds recognizing either his or Kyuubi's scent a mile away. If Naruto was to visit Hana and maybe her mother, he would need to tell her first hand. After finishing the scroll, Naruto summoned Gamakichi who in turn appeared with his belly up like he was resting in a swimming pool, thus falling on his back.

"**Oi Naruto, why the hell you summoned me now, I'm on my vacation" **- Shouted Gamakichi, but Naruto didn't even flinch as he was with his arms crossed.

"My apologies Gamakichi and uh sorry to wake you from your vacation, it's just one more thing...I need you to deliver this scroll to Hana and then I promise that I won't bother you for the whole month" - Said Naruto, earning a snort from the toad who nodded and vanished instantly, before appearing at Hana's room, surprising the girl quite a bit.

"**Oi Hana, Naruto sent you a message, he doesn't expect reply, just this message**" - Said Gamakichi before leaving the plan of existence and returning to his oil pool.

Hana for her part was surprised to receive a message from her lover. Not because she wasn't happy to, but the fact that she was about to do it from missing him since last time they met. Taking the scroll, she opened and began reading:

_

* * *

__hana-chan, how have you been my love?_

_I have some great news to you. Seeing as I managed to end the B ranked list of the bingo book, I accepted the Hokage's vacation offer and guess where I am now, yes, you're right...I'm back in the village and I want to visit you and maybe, get to meet your Mother if possible. Now, the problem is that my scent would be sensed a mile away from either one of your family, hence why I thought best by inform you of my arrival at your house in approximately an hour from now. _

_I can't wait to see you, _

_Love, Naruto._

* * *

Hana didn't wait to close the scroll until she opened a big smile. Her boyfriend was finally home. Kiba was away in a mission with his old Genin team, so he wouldn't be a problem. The girl went downstairs and saw her mother having some breakfast with her dog as well as Hana's triplets.

"Wow, there Hana-chan I see you slept well? I bet you dreamed of Naruto once more haven't you?" - Smiled Tsume, before seeing her daughter blushing like crazy, before laughing her ass off.

"Kaa-san, he's here.... I just received a message saying that he wanted to visit here in an hour" - Said Hana to which Tsume displayed her surprised look at the news. Naruto has been a popular subject in her house ever since Hana began dating him and , even if Kiba wasn't familiar with his sister's relationship, often talked highly of the blond. Kiba, at some point, displayed his disliking to this 'mission' Naruto was on with the Sannin Jiraiya, since because of it, Naruto wasn't able to progress in rank while everyone was promoted to Jounin already.

Tsume smiled at the thought thinking about the effect of ranks for a hunter-nin. She thought that since Naruto was cleaning the B ranked missing-nin section, he got to face Jounin in battle and won, hence why he was the only Genin on par with a Jounin.

"So, it's today that I'll finally meet the man of your dreams Hana-chan? I admit that hearing you speak about him so much spiked my curiosity a bit. Do you think he'll stay for real this time or just plain vacation?" - Asked Tsume.

"Sadly, just for vacation purposes, but that's better than him becoming a man whose only ability is to kill. He still has the A ranked missing-nin to deal with, but I hope that he sees reason and revoke his hunter-nin status. I can't help but worry for him now that he will be facing enemies close to a sannin's level of power. I know that he is indeed strong, but still...." - Said Hana as she looked down at the thought of losing Naruto.

Tsume very well knew that look since she shared that fate with her husband, but it wouldn't do Hana good if she remembered of Hana's deceased father dying on a mission. She needed to better Hana's mood. So, she just played the part of the mother and only smiled to her daughter, before explaining that if Naruto managed to overcome B level shinobis with ease, than he could very well cope against A ranked missing-nins.

"Also, my lovely daughter, if Naruto comes here and see this worried face; he'll be worried in return. You don't want that, do you?" - Asked Tsume, before seeing Hana smile all of a sudden, thus earning a smile in return from the elder woman.

"You're right mom and besides, Tsunade-sama is going to try as well to convince him to stay, so the odds are in our favor. Naruto is still a ninja and therefore subjected to the Hokage's orders" - Explained Hana, before reaching the fridge for some breakfast, before hearing some light giggling from her mother.

Tsume realized that Naruto would have people getting on his very nerve while trying to convince him not to return to being a hunter-nin. And if she knew her daughter like he did, than Hana would stick to convincing him until he left once more. The fact was that Tsume wouldn't stop her daughter from doing so. Even if the elder Inuzuka understood and respected Naruto's decisions to leave the village, he couldn't deny that not only he will be facing elite enemies, but also escape Akatsuki's grasp at the same time.

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

After sending Gamakichi to deliver the message, Naruto vanished from the Hokage Mountain back to a place where he knew he would find him. It was amusing at least for Naruto to know that no matter which country or city this guy was in, there would be one place that he could possibly be…the public onsen. Actually, Naruto didn't even know that Jiraiya was in Konoha, but the fact was that if he was than definitely the place to look for him would be the public onsen. In five minutes, Naruto reached the bushes near such a place, before he began to look for him.

It didn't take one minute of searching before Naruto heard that distinguished sound that could only have left from his mouth.

"He he he" – Giggled the casual observer known as Jiraiya of the Sannin, not even aware that Naruto was already behind him. Seriously, not even Orochimaru here in person would take his attention away from peeping at the girls.

"**You should've learned said trait from him, brat. Imagine, all those ladies…he he he" **– Giggled Kyuubi inside his head as pictures immediately appeared of Anko, Kira, Kurenai and Hana. Upon seeing them, Naruto couldn't help but snort at having perverts for companionship. Actually, Naruto really enjoyed them, especially the last picture of Hana naked in bed, but that's not the case right now.

"Excuse me Jiraiya-sama?" – Asked Naruto being polite so that Jiraiya wouldn't know it was him for a future prank. The pervert waved his hands telling the strange man to go away and stop bothering him. Naruto smiled and this time poked the Sannin on his shoulders, receiving, once again, the hand waving Naruto off. Naruto, then, poked again this time on his head. Eventually, the pervert was fed up with this imbecile and turned his head snarling. However, when he was about to scream at the man for being a nuisance, he saw Naruto's attire and frightening mask, before jumping scared. The bad part of this was that he was only a few feet away from the female part of the onsen, thus falling right inside and causing quite the commotion.

All that Naruto could hear was the man screaming for help and the ladies shouting war screams towards Jiraiya. After almost getting killed, Jiraiya managed to escape of course with women in tow, but one of them, actually the only kunoichi, stayed at the onsen, since the one who was peeping actually left as long with everyone on the onsen. Kurenai was just enjoying the few peaceful moments a mother kunoichi could have. Little Asuma was a handful and even though the Hokage suspended her ninja license until Asuma's second birthday, it was almost impossible to calm the little infant enough to warrant her some sleeping. However, her kunoichi senses didn't fade and she could very well sense a strong chakra within the area.

Quickly, she went back to the restroom and placed her normal clothes before going to investigate the surroundings. This chakra was familiar, but she couldn't just grasp as to whom it belonged to, until she saw him standing on top of a twenty feet tree, supposedly waiting for something or someone to show up. Instantly, memories flooded her mind as to a confrontation she had with him prior to him becoming what he is now and the horrible accusations she made. Kurenai did everything against what she was trained for. It was common knowledge that the job of a ninja is risky and that death is a part of it. No matter the circumstances, the ninja must always be prepared to deal with the situation accordingly. Of course, there was always the fact that ninjas are humans and that humans can't handle the emotional strain of losing someone you love and get to think rationally in response.

Asuma's death at the hands of Akatsuki shocked and angered Kurenai simply because of the existence of the tailed demons. Said organization's objective was to capture the nine tailed beasts at all costs and in the end, Kurenai ended up blaming her lover's death on a person that houses the very being the organization is after, one Uzumaki Naruto. Naruto never asked to house a demon such as the Kyuubi and Kurenai knew that. The fact was that she was short on finding a scapegoat to blame for what happened to her and Naruto wore the glove. And even after blaming everything on him, Naruto just confirmed everything and accepted the guilt, saying that he was to be held responsible for the Kyuubi inside of him and that if she wanted, she could kill him in order to avenge her beloved.

She did regret thinking like that one day before he left, when he was picking this black outfit and even when Hana couldn't stop talking about him, Kurenai couldn't feel guiltier for doing what she did, for blaming Naruto for what happened. She wanted, then, to apologize to the blond once more, even if Naruto himself said she didn't have to.

As Kurenai approached the tree Naruto was standing, she just looked up and was surprised to see that Naruto was already looking at her.

"Hello there Kurenai-san" – Said Naruto as he dropped to the ground in order to meet the kunoichi face to face. The mask sure was frightening, Kurenai thought. And while unaware of his reputation as the hunter-fox, she had heard some rumors related to a new hunter-nin that is diminishing the bingo book greatly. Also, now that Naruto was right in front of her, the difference was plainly visible. His muscles were more refined, even though she couldn't see much from the leather jacket and regarding his height, Kurenai assumed him to be close to six feet tall.

"Naruto…How long have you been in Konoha?" – Asked Kurenai, not really wanting to remember old discussions.

"I just arrived, I asked for a little vacation and Tsunade-sama granted me two weeks. I heard little Asuma was born, how is he?" – Asked Naruto, earning a smile from Kurenai who in turn remembered about the little typhoon breaking everything.

"A handful, but he looks like his father so much that is kind of scary. He can be a bit destructive at times, so I decided to rest a little bit and hired a Genin team to take care of him just for today. So, I understand that you and Hana are seeing each other?" – Asked Kurenai, earning a suspicious look at the possibility of his girlfriend opening her mouth to the entire village about it. Sensing his preoccupation, Kurenai waved it off explaining that Hana is one of her best friends and confidant and that few people know about the hidden relationship.

"I'm actually scheduled to make a visit at her house in half an hour" – Said Naruto, earning a nod from Kurenai, before silence rained the conversation. That discussion created a awkward silence between Kurenai and Naruto. Kurenai not wanting to talk about it and Naruto don't seeing relevance in bringing something like that on a normal conversation. His opinion didn't change, though in all this time. Asuma's death at the hands of those who were after him was uncontroversial to the blond and saying that it wasn't his fault, it would be a lie. Kurenai, for instance, wanted to say that she was sorry for what she said to the hunter-nin that time and she gathered courage in her brain to do so. However, when her brain would give the order for the mouth to open and speak, said order was overruled and thoughts of worry filled her head. _How pathetic, I'm a Jounin for cry's sake and I can take care of a son that is better described as a maniac back at my house…why can't I talk to him what needs to be said? Okay, I'll talk…I've been training what do say ever since he left…_

"Naruto, I…I wanted to apologize for what happened between us" – Said Kurenai, earning a surprised look from Naruto, even though because of the mask, no one could see.

"For what reason Kurenai-san, you're apologizing? What happened with Asuma was my fault entirely. It showed me that the longer I stay in Konoha, the more chances are for another one to die because of who I am" – Explained Naruto, but Kurenai negated with her head, seeing how stubborn the blond was to settle this once and for all, this wasn't healthy for him.

"Hear me out okay, I want to explain…" – Said Kurenai, until Naruto nodded, before she continued. "I'll admit that when it happened, my entire life shattered in million pieces, I….I didn't know what to do, I mean Asuma-kun was the man I loved. Needless to say, every ninja training I had thus far was swallowed by the pain in my heart. I wanted revenge more than anything…I wanted Akatsuki to pay for what they did to my husband. In the end, I blamed you since you are who they want. I was wrong, though, to do that to you, Naruto. How could I blame you when you never asked to be in this situation? You faced so much hate and anger from everyone and you didn't need another one throwing you hated glances. I just wanted you to know that what happened to my Asuma was because of Akatsuki and them alone" – Explained Kurenai, before closing her eyes in effort, so as not to shed a tear for her beloved Asuma.

Naruto kept watching the woman in front of him, opening her heart for him and found some level of wisdom in her words. However, he knew that deep down inside, nothing would have happened if he never existed in the first place. Perhaps, the Yondaime wouldn't be able to stop the Kyuubi and the village would be decimated, but Naruto very well knew the pain of being alone in life, not having someone to depend on, instead only relying on yourself for survival. In a sense of the word, Naruto never changed. Being out there as a hunter-nin meant taking care of yourself while at the same time, dealing with missing-nins. Nevertheless, with all Naruto's experience in dealing with the past, something are better off forgotten.

"Kurenai-san, what happened between us is in the past right now and it should remain in the past. Sometimes, it's best to forget the minor conflicts for what's really worth our time. You have little Asuma and Hana to look forward to and I as well have those who I care deeply for. Now, though, I'm afraid that the pervert won't return, so I'll go to Hana's" – Said Naruto before he turned and began walking towards Hana's house, before he heard Kurenai call to him, before walking right next to him. Those were wise words, Kurenai thought. As she looked at Naruto's mask, she couldn't help but see a much respectful figure than a seventeen year old guy who didn't pass the rank of Genin should be.

Kurenai knew most of Naruto's peer from the academy and while some of them like Shino and Shikamaru displayed a certain level of maturity, Naruto probably became the most mature of them all. Despite facing such a dangerous and lonely profession, it appeared that it transformed Naruto into a stronger being; someone not afraid of stepping up to himself even if against the strongest adversaries.

"Kurenai-san, why are you following me?" – Asked Naruto, not at all bothered by the company but rather curious to the woman's intentions.

"I happen to appreciate a little visit to Hana-chan and since you're going there, I might as well go with you unless you don't feel comfortable around me than I can leave" – Said Kurenai, with a normal smile on her face while Naruto was looking at her.

"I was just curious that's all. Besides, better in company with you than with someone wanting to kill me" – Joked Naruto, earning a contained laughter from Kurenai who in turn understood what Naruto meant.

"So, tell me…what's like being alone out there facing missing-nins? Weren't you lonely?" – Asked Kurenai to which Naruto negated with his head.

"After a while, you get used to depending on your own. As to the whole part of facing missing-nins, there isn't much to say. You fight and kill most of the time and be aware for one of them sneaking on you when your guard is down. The problem, though, is learning how to cope with the difference between doing a job and being a murderer. I actually requested the vacation from fear of becoming something I know I'd regret for my entire life" – Said Naruto as he lost the focus in his eyes and pictured every killing he ever did as a hunter-nin.

"I could only half understand what you're saying because of some kills of my own, but getting gratification for those I managed to save in the end managed loosen my heart…you on the other hand, does not receive any gratification. I wonder if I could ever take up what you take and come out unscathed" – Stated Kurenai, earning a nod from Naruto, who was still remembering every damn kill he ever did, until one person came to mind, Misao; the only missing-nin that didn't lose his or her life because of Naruto. In the end, the hunter-nin let her go and sent information to Konoha that she was killed by a mob of bandits. Misao was the only proof that Naruto was not the cold hearted assassin.

Seeing that Naruto didn't say anything, she gave him some space. One aspect that Kurenai managed to feel from Naruto's expression was someone who felt every drop of blood that he took away.

"Naruto, I can very well see how you're feeling right now, you can't do this your entire life, it will consume you" – Said Kurenai and the truth was that Naruto knew that.

"It's not a matter of choice Kurenai-san. If I chose to stay then Akatsuki would barge through Konoha's walls and kill everyone here if it means they'll get me in the end" – Said Naruto before silence once more reined the conversation. Kurenai didn't like to hear such words coming from Naruto, even though the kunoichi side of her found wisdom in them. She knew that Naruto was suffering from doing this, so maybe, she could do something to convince Naruto to stay. She would have to talk to Hana in order to arrange something.

* * *

**===With Jiraiya===**

Hiding in a hidden alley, Jiraiya managed to escape the barrage of women after him. He couldn't help but curse the brat for what he had done. Nevertheless, now that he appeared, Jiraiya was certain that sooner or later he would appear at the Hokage's office, which meant that he was supposed to be there as well. Jiraiya was worried about the blond since Akatsuki stopped following his false leads to Naruto's position and would be now hunting him down themselves. He even found an alternative plan to fool Akatsuki by appearing as Naruto somewhere and as the hunter-nin in another place, thus confusing their track.

Of course, that was just a temporary plan since Akatsuki is composed by S ranked missing-nins and there isn't so much you could keep from them before they retaliated. The pervert just wished he could reason with Naruto about aborting the hunter-nin program for the mean time, in order for them to prepare a more suitable counter-intelligence plan. However, he knew it wouldn't be easy to convince Naruto to stay and become a regular ninja.

* * *

**===At the Inuzuka Compound===**

It took a little while for Naruto and Kurenai to reach the Inuzuka Compound and they were in front of the door before Naruto knocked the door, only to be tackled on the ground by the very same dog he petted during his dates with Hana. The husky was so happy to find Naruto once more that she was already at the door the moment she sensed his smell. Hana was already at his side, sharing the husky's enthusiasm.

"It's good to see you once more Naruto-kun, I missed you" – Said Hana while smiling at seeing Naruto play with the husky.

"I missed you as well Hana-chan and you little girl, how have you been?" – Stated Naruto as he played with the husky's ear a little bit, receiving a bark in response to the appraisal.

"Come on inside, Naruto-kun, there you can take off your mask and also you could meet my mother" – Invited Hana, before Naruto nodded and got up from the ground before walking next to his girlfriend and pet inside the house.

After coming inside, Naruto began to scout the compound a little bit and offer nice comments to Hana for the nice house. However, he didn't manage to walk far before he was tackled on the ground once more, but this time was the pups he retrieved close to a year before. Normally, Naruto wouldn't worry much about it, but seeing the size of the dogs now, their tackles were more of a hit than anything else. Hana and Kurenai laughed as Naruto was actually adored by the Inuzuka dogs while Hana invited both Naruto and Kurenai for a cup of tea to which they accepted, but not before the twins let him leave the ground once more. Naruto was about to do something when he heard a strange voice talking to him.

"Play with their ears and they'll stop" – Said Tsume until she saw Naruto nodding and using his hands to grab their ears and began the nice massage, before seeing the pups suddenly sit and show signs of appreciating the gesture. With that, Naruto managed to get up while he continued to pet the pups, until Tsume appeared next to him. "I can see why my daughter likes you Naruto-kun; you clearly have a way with animals. It's a pleasure to meet you, I'm Hana's mother Tsume" – Said Tsume as she extended her hand for Naruto to get up before they shook hands.

"The pleasure is all mine Inuzuka-sama; Hana-chan told me a lot about you and it's an honor to meet you" – Said Naruto as formal as possible, but little did he know that the Inuzuka matriarch didn't care at all about formalities.

"You don't need to be all formal with me Naruto, but I request that you take off your mask once inside my house. I want to meet Hana's boyfriend" – Smiled Tsume, earning a nod from Naruto as he unstrapped the mask lock and took it off, thus showing his golden locks and dark blue eyes. Upon looking, Tsume had the decency to gasp at the amazing similarity that Naruto shared with the late Yondaime Hokage. She actually heard from Hana that Naruto was the exact copy of Namikaze Minato, but Hana never told that Naruto was Minato reincarnated.

"Is there something wrong Inuzuka-sama?" – Asked Naruto, not sure of what was going on, thus waking Tsume from her wonderings, before smiling.

"It's nothing, Naruto and please do not call me –sama, it makes me look old. Just Inuzuka-san will do. Now, I believe my daughter is making us some tea so how about we join them" – Invited Tsume to which Naruto nodded and went ahead while Tsume was studying her daughter's boyfriend. Actually, she was checking him out from head to toe, not with second intentions, but rather to see more similarities between Naruto and Minato. Naruto was definitely taller and stronger build than Minato, plus the face was identical; if Tsume didn't know better, she would think that they were related or something among those lines.

As mother and perhaps son-in-law appeared at the kitchen, they saw both Hana and Kurenai discussing about something in particular. However, upon seeing Naruto, they had different reactions. Hana of course was already used to his gorgeous face, but she stopped what she was talking from fear of Naruto discovering their intentions. Kurenai, though, had the decency to blush. She had already seen his face before he left to become a hunter-nin, but now that he grew up once more, she couldn't help but stare dumbfounded. Naruto's blue eyes and golden locks were already breath-taking, but now his face was more angular and thus his features were now more pronounced. Kurenai was glad, though, that no one was looking at her because she would be in big trouble for checking her friend's boyfriend out.

Immediately, Tsume and Naruto joined the two girls at the table before the husky appeared once more next to Naruto and just used his feet for a nice and comfy pillow, earning a smile from Naruto before he turned his head to hear Tsume speaking.

"So tell us Naruto, something about you" – Asked Tsume, wanting to know something about her daughter's boyfriend. Naruto, for his part, found this to be a bit awkward since he didn't know Tsume's thoughts on him. He didn't know if the Kyuubi did something to her side of the family.

"Well, there isn't much to say really, Inuzuka-san. I don't see anything relevant in my life that is different than any other orphan shinobi. I have few personal vices, concerning one special type of food and I don't have a hobby per se, during my trips, I found some interest in swimming in lakes and rivers. It somehow relaxes me to just be on water and look to the sky. My life as hunter-nin is very demanding and sometimes, doing nothing makes up for the heavy strain I set my body either training or fighting missing-nins" – Explained Naruto, earning an interesting nod from Tsume who actually considered Naruto's hobby original. According to Tsume, what differs people's personalities are the activities they choose for relaxation and she never heard someone saying that they liked swimming.

"It's very interesting, indeed. I know some aspects of a hunter-nin's job, but I can't grasp the entire thing. Some Inuzukas were hunter-nin because of our tracking skills. I also noticed that you happen to enjoy being around our dogs, Naruto" – Smiled Tsume as she saw Hana's husky sleeping next to Naruto, also remembering the pups jumping on him. Naruto for his turn smiled at his mother-in-law and looked at the husky using his feet as a pillow.

"I can't answer that really. Before Akamaru and Hana-chan's huskies, I never had interaction with them. It seems, though, that they like staying around me. I'm curious, though, about their ability to speak our language; neither Kiba's dog Akamaru nor Hana's triplets can talk" – Asked Naruto, earning a smile from Tsume at the display of interest in knowing about the family, before she explained.

"It takes a while for a pup to learn the human language. The only one so far to reach it was Kudomaru and he's been with me since I was six years old. Actually, there is no certain amount of time needed for a pup to learn how speak, for instance Kudomaru learned when I became a Jounin which was twenty years ago. Hana's triplets are closer than Akamaru to learn how to speak" – Said Tsume, earning a nod from Naruto who, then, used his hand and scratched the Husky's ear, before seeing the animal get up from the floor and tackle Naruto to the ground once more, before licking him on the face.

Hana smiled at her boyfriend and looked at her mother to see that she was smiling as well. To Hana, it meant the world that her mother approved Naruto and her smile very well indicated that. She would just have to speak with her regarding what she spoken with Kurenai earlier.

As the time passed, Tsume asked some aspects of Naruto's work which included evasion methods that missing-nin does to avoid being found, methods used for tracking purposes, during which Tsume was impressed upon knowing that Naruto is able to summon toads just like Minato and Jiraiya and then from knowing that they could natural energy to feel the enemy's chakra from afar. Along the discussion, Tsume couldn't help but be amazed at Naruto's mastery of the subject of hunting. The explanation was spoken with advanced vocabulary and even advanced terms regarding some of the ninja arts to which Tsume confessed not knowing much about like pressure points and how to better disable the opponent by hitting specific points of the human body. Naruto also explained to the elder woman some anatomy lessons where a shinobi could learn how to send the opponent into a near death state by hitting senbon needles at a specific point of the neck.

"You sure did your research Naruto? Where did you learn all this anyway? No offense, but I remember my son saying you wasn't that bright at the academy" – Asked Tsume to which Naruto nodded with his head.

"Where as I cannot be considered a genius by any means, nor do I want to be called like that, indeed, takes longer for me to learn something than others, however where as time is needed for someone to learn Ninjutsu for instance, I can use time at my disposal, thus severely reducing the actual period needed for me to learn something" – Explained Naruto, but for those present, it didn't make much sense, so Naruto offered himself to explain once more. "By using the Kage Bunshin, I can reduce the time needed to learn something, since in the end; it will be two heads instead of one. The clone memories will simply transfer to my own, making it look like I took half the time needed if I were to do it alone" – Explained Naruto, this time, earning a smile from Tsume and the rest, until Kurenai decided to ask a question.

"How many can you do nowadays? I remembered hearing about your high chakra reserves, but that was a long time ago" – Asked Kurenai, earning Naruto's attention as he turned to face the crimson eyed woman.

"I stopped counting actually. Actually, when training, I simply make a certain number of clones in order to assemble them in different groups. For instance, if I were to master a certain element plus get some training in another element, I can just create twenty Kage Bunshins and set each ten for each element and I can even practice some physical exercises on my own, which in reality, I would be training for both elements as well in the end" – Explained Naruto, before seeing those in the table open their eyes in utter realization at Naruto's explanation.

They continued the conversation for a few more minutes before the group separated. Actually, Naruto wanted to wander around the compound for a second while the women got to chat and the subject was entirely about the blond enigma. Back to Naruto, he was at the window that leads to the main garden where he could very well see the extensive property owned by the Inuzukas. The main garden could be better described as an open field with gigantic pathways and wild vegetation. Also, Naruto got to see many dogs wandering around, sniffing the flowers, playing around, swimming at the lake in the middle of the property, among other things.

"**Never was much fan of dogs myself. They smell bad and are a constant pain in the ass" – **Snorted Kyuubi inside Naruto's mind alerting the blond to his presence.

_And you telling me that you liked other animals, besides foxes? It's kind of difficult imagining you being 'fan' of any type of animal aside from your kind_" – Thought Naruto, before hearing another from the fox.

"**Even though we are the same family sort of saying together with the wolves, dogs are not considered animals, instead being known for being a man's best companion. A dog is raised in captivity while the rest of us have to hunt to be able to eat. Their path is laid before them in a silver platter" – **Said Kyuubi before hearing Naruto laughing for a while.

_Changing the subject, I already got to read some of the material regarding Doton Ninjutsu. I should finish reading the rest of it tonight and then we can begin to practice the element – _Thought Naruto.

"**You still have ten more days to rest; I suggest you stop using your chakra for at least five more days. Learn the theory first and if possible, memorize the hand seals for the techniques. In five days, your chakra will be less strained for the activities, thus more relaxed. Meanwhile, they are a lot of 'nice' activities to do and happily, all they includes the women you've met so far"** – Said Kyuubi, before showing hot images in Naruto's head, until one of them appeared that made Naruto choke.

_Kyuubi, that's Tsume naked. She is Hana-chan's mother for Christ's sake, I knew that you're a pervert but to even suggest of having sex with my girlfriend's mother, that's beyond sick_ – Thought Naruto, before hearing Kyuubi laughing once more, enjoying himself to share Naruto's life experiences. The boy was simply very entertaining to see.

"**Hey, ever heard of the saying like mother like daughter, he he he"** – Said Kyuubi as he placed another picture inside Naruto's mind, this time placing the two side by side in comparison.

While Kyuubi was taunting Naruto in regards to his mother-in-law naked, the women were discussing some evil plan that Hana suggested.

* * *

**===At night===**

Later, Naruto had some dinner at the Inuzuka Household and then went to his new home to take a long bath and then go visit one last person for the day.

Naruto wondered about the five days he had to just do nothing and for someone who was on active duty non-stop for a whole year, doing nothing seems more pleasurable than doing something you like to do. Also, Naruto had his scrolls in Doton Ninjutsu, so he would study his scroll for the duration of his vacation and hoped to learn at least the necessary theory in order to begin earth manipulation. Just as he entered one of the apartments he chose to live in, Naruto took off his mask and clothes, before entering the shower.

As he let the running water clean his body, Naruto began to wonder about Hana's family. Kiba, he already knew as being annoying, but Tsume surprised him. The elder woman had a bit of both Kiba and Hana and that what was astonishing. As every Inuzuka, she could be wild and fierce, but like his precious Hana, she could as well be gentle and kind. One of the things Naruto first noticed was that Tsume didn't hate him because of the Kyuubi. It was hard, nowadays, to see someone that doesn't resent the fox and Naruto found himself hard to believe that the Inuzuka matriarch would be so lenient over who killed either her husband, friend, aunt, father, mother, among others. Also, if Naruto interpreted correctly, she was testing him to see if he was the right one for her daughter from the many questions and the constant checkups she did with both the eyes and the nose.

Tsume was unaware, but being a hunter-nin, Naruto could sense when he was being watched from a mile away, since in some level the watcher's chakra always flares no matter his or her intention. As to Hana, Naruto couldn't help but smile upon seeing her smile. Naruto could tell Hana wanted her mother's approval and from the conversations they spent together, Naruto knew how much Tsume's opinion mattered to the girl. The blond wondered about Tsume's thoughts on him, though. Actually, it was kind of strange to be thinking about the almost mother-in-law in said light. Naruto believed that Hana meant so much to him that if she needed her mother's approval, then Naruto would work hard to earn Tsume's approval.

"**Look at yourself, saying such things. You've been together for less than a year and you already falling for her madly. What's next?"** – Snorted Kyuubi, but Naruto could only smile as the words kicked in. Of course, Naruto wasn't thinking of proposing, not yet anyway. He just found out that the more he knew Hana the more he would realize that he enjoyed being with her.

As he left the shower, he put his clothes on and left the apartment straight for the Hokage's office.

* * *

**===At the Hokage's office===**

Tsunade was looking from her window after a long and stressful day of work. She wanted to have some sake, but Shizune managed to hide it well this time, so she settled for a cup of tea. One subject plagued her mind, though and it was Naruto. Knowing that he was within the village walls somewhat eased her mind, but the fact that's been almost four days and not once did he appear to see her. It was unnerving to know how much Naruto changed and it was even more unnerving to realize that Naruto no longer saw Tsunade in the same light.

Just as she was about to turn and leave her office, though, she heard a voice that she long longed for.

"Hello Baa-chan, it's been a while?" – Asked Naruto, with the hunter-nin mask on his hand and using the other one to greet the blond Hokage. The response he got was weird, since Tsunade just stood there unmoving for a while. Suddenly, though, she moved faster than Naruto could predict and enveloped him in a tight hug, or least tried to anyway. Naruto had grown so much that Tsunade couldn't reach him entirely. After she broke free from the hug, she just grabbed his collar and began shaking the hunter-nin.

"What took you so long to get here brat, I was beginning to believe that you didn't miss me" – Snarled Tsunade, but Naruto couldn't answer from the incessant shaking. Only after she stopped that he recollected himself and spoke.

"Sorry about not visiting you right away, it's just that I've been on the run so much hunting and being hunted that I thought about controlling information. The only ones who knew I'm in Konoha are you, the pervert, Kurenai-san, Hana-chan and Tsume-san. Also, I had a little run with Itachi and Kisame near the village so if words got out that I was in Konoha, then they'll come and get me" – Explained Naruto before hearing Tsunade snort and then hug him once more.

"I'm glad that you're okay, though, how did you escape the Akatsuki?" – Asked Tsunade to which Naruto placed his mask on the table and then explained.

"They underestimated me so I used a Kage Bunshin diversion to escape. It was good that I didn't meet them as a hunter-nin or else they would be looking for me, instead of just looking for Uzumaki Naruto. So, by the looks of it, Konoha didn't change much?" – Asked Naruto, to which Tsunade smiled, but negated said information.

"Of course, it looks the same, but what changed were your academy peers. All of them became Jounin now, Hinata was the last one and she managed to attain the rank, you, now are the only one who's still a Genin" – Taunted Tsunade, but surprisingly, Naruto didn't open his mouth, instead only smiled at Tsunade's attempt.

"Yes, I'm also the only Genin in all the elemental nations who was able to take on the entire C and B ranked section of the bingo book and also able to escape from S ranked criminals such as the Akatsuki all this time. I guess ranks don't mean much for me, nowadays. Well, what else changed around here? What about the Uchiha; any news about him?" – Asked Naruto, before seeing Tsunade's serious face.

"No word on him whatsoever and that's what concerns me. Ever since that mission you took with Sakura and Yamato, no word was brought to me regarding the Uchiha. I fear that Orochimaru is just counting the seconds left to take his body, the problem is that we cannot find information about it. Did you hear anything?" – Asked Tsunade to which Naruto negated with his head, saying that he didn't focus much on 'A' ranked missing-nins, but rather the C and B ranked.

"When I return out there, Sasuke will be on my list and then I'll look after him, it seems Kabuto is an A ranked as well, but Orochimaru will be a problem, though" – Said Naruto as he rested his chin on top of his hand in deep thought.

"Well, we'll worry about that later, the good thing is that you're back safe and sound. So, what you plan to do for vacation?" – Asked Tsunade, earning a nod from Naruto.

"Well, furball believes that doing anything besides training is preferable. I don't know; something about easing the flow of chakra. So, I chose to just relax at home and spend some time at the Hokage Mountain. Anywhere where people can't see me, you know how it works" – Said Naruto, earning a nod from Tsunade who even though, didn't agree with Naruto, found that she was happy he was here and not out there.

"Ok brat, you were late and I can't stand being inside this office any longer, enjoy your vacation and we'll talk once more when the two weeks are over" – Said Tsunade to which Naruto nodded and left the place before Tsunade locking the office.

* * *

**===The next day===**

After getting some good sleep, because of seeing her little brother, Tsunade appeared at her office once more. She thought that nothing could ruin the day, even with the huge piles of work threatening to fall and make a huge mess. Suddenly, though, just as she sit on her desk, three people entered and somehow, Tsunade imagined it has something to do with Naruto. Tsume, Hana and Kurenai stood before her and Tsunade very well knew she didn't call these three for a mission.

"Good morning Tsunade-sama" – Said Tsume to which Tsunade nodded, before Tsume began to speak. "Tsunade-sama, my daughter has a plan for Naruto to stay in the village and I believe you'd like to hear it, since you wished for him to stay." - Said Tsume, before looking at Hana for an explanation. Tsunade, for her part, really wished for him to stay, but she chose not to force him on the matter and yet accepted the fact that he returned even if for only two weeks.

"Tsunade-sama, as much as I care for Naruto-kun, I don't want to see him get hurt out there. So, I thought about using his rank as an impeditive to proceed as hunter-nin. You could assemble a new rule that stand that Hunter-nins must be either Jounin or special Jounin. This way, Naruto wouldn't be able to be one at least until he progressed to Jounin" – Explained Hana, earning a smile from Tsunade.

"That's a good plan, except that for Naruto, the ranks between ninjas are no longer taken into consideration. That's only logical at least to me, since being a Genin, he managed to take on Jounin and won. Also, I don't believe he'll appreciate the idea much, even though I know Hana-san, where it comes from. The fact remains that Akatsuki is on the run and Naruto may very well be in danger. The last time, Itachi underestimated him so he escaped, but next time, he may not be so lucky. I'll figure out on how to approach him with this, but not now as I'm way too busy and I can very well see that convincing him will take time, but I'll call you all here first to aid me in talking to him, deal" – Said Tsunade, earning a nod from those present before they excused themselves.

_Huh, I wonder how he will reacts once I tell him _– Thought Tsunade in regards to her decision regarding Naruto's requirement to pass the incoming Chuunin exams that will happen in two weeks.

* * *

**AN**: That's it for this chapter, tell me what you think.

Next time, Tsunade will call Naruto to deliver the bomb. Will Naruto be okay with it or Tsunade will have her work cut out for her in order to convince him? Also, next chapter, Naruto will meet his peers once more, however will he present himself as him or as the disguised hunter-nin?

_Chapter 13 – Tsunade's bet_


	13. Tsunade's bet

**

* * *

****Chapter 13 – Tsunade's bet**

**Beta: Dreetje**

* * *

Still unaware of Hana's diabolical plan, Naruto was wandering around the village for a while. He wanted to train, but the fox raised some valid point about him easing the strain of chakra, so he needed to occupy himself with something, but the keyword here is what? Suddenly, he looked back and saw that a person was smiling straight at him wearing a Jounin attire and a blue mask that would cover up to his nose, also carrying the infamous Icha Icha Paradise.

"I take it you're not going to be here long?" - Asked Kakashi, while continuing to walk before Naruto started to walk alongside him.

"Sometimes, it's nice to take your mind off the killing part of the job. It gets hard, after a while, you know?" - Stated Naruto to which Kakashi nodded as they remained walking towards nowhere; until Kakashi took his face out of the book and looked at his once time student.

"Rumors are spreading about a hunter-nin that is cleaning the bingo book, they're calling him 'hunter-fox' you wouldn't have anything to do with that, wouldn't you?" - Asked Kakashi.

"Well, one time this missing-nin called me like that before I cut his head off, I wouldn't imagine he had the time to spread information about me. At least, no one knows what the hunter-fox looks like, so my identity is safe for now. I was starting to worry there Kakashi, chances were the A ranked missing-nins would already be alerted of me and make preparations for an ambush" - Said Naruto, but Kakashi just settled for looking at his once student while placing the book in front of him. So they continued walking, while Naruto was wondering why they were going to one of Konoha's training grounds. After reaching a clearing, Naruto turned to see Kakashi who already kept his book inside his holster and remained with his hands inside his pockets.

"You know it's somewhat rude not to call me your sensei, I know I didn't train you much in the past, but at least I deserve as much" - Said Kakashi with no expression change whatsoever. But then again, Naruto wasn't interested in observing the man's behavior.

"It's just like the last time Kakashi. I cannot call you like that otherwise people will know who I am, but maybe I could use a 'sempai' for suffix, what do you say?" - Suggested Naruto, before seeing Kakashi holding his chin in a thinking pose, before smiling at the blond.

"I think that will suffice, now I'm sure you're wondering why I dragged you here to a training ground?" - Said Kakashi, to which Naruto nod and he continued. "I've been meaning to train more on Kenjutsu and I was looking for a sparring partner to hone my skills with. Would you be interested?"- Asked Kakashi as he unleashed his Anbu ninjato from within a scroll. Upon seeing this, Naruto smiled and unsheathed his newly reformed katana.

"You know you could've told me beforehand. You didn't need to keep the mystery going. So how do you want to do this, I was meaning to stop using chakra for a while, but if you want to, I can postpone for after this fight?" - Asked Naruto, though Kakashi only smiled.

"Just don't kill me and the rest is allowed. I trust that you have no issues with me using the Sharingan, Hein Naruto?" - Asked Kakashi to which Naruto negated with his head, before thrusting the sword on the ground and taking his mask off, before seeing Kakashi lifting an eyebrow as in questioning why the hell he did it.

As they took his sword from the ground, he spread his feet forward while keeping the other positioned backwards, while using his both hands to position the sword next to his left ear while watching Kakashi with a smile on his face.

"What good would be a Sharingan if my mask doesn't allow you to look at my eyes? At least this way, I can practice when I face either one of the Uchiha brothers" - Said Naruto, earning a nod from Kakashi as he also fell into standard Anbu position, before analyzing Naruto's posture for a while.

Kakashi couldn't help but pride himself of the blonde's skills. Because of the Sharingan, Kakashi would know Naruto's attack intent seconds before it happens. However, by not possessing the intent of attacking first, Kakashi wouldn't have a way of knowing what would happen, thus keeping his focus for sudden shifts in the blonde's behavior. It was fast, faster than Kakashi thought it would be and he very well knew that if he didn't have the experience he wouldn't be able to notice that Naruto was no longer looking at him, but rather Kakashi's feet. Kakashi didn't have time to wonder when Naruto suddenly charged with blinding speed, before maneuvering his sword for a fast and powerful horizontal slash at Kakashi's left side.

However, Kakashi managed to parry Naruto's heavy attack with his ninjato and twisted his body to land a reverse kick on Naruto, but the blond did a back-flip, thus escaping the attack and facing Kakashi once more. The silver haired Jounin was looking at the damage his ninjato sustained and had the decency to be surprised that his sword was broken in multiple pieces.

"I thought I said that you couldn't kill me, Naruto. That was a very brutal attack" - Said Kakashi, earning a nod from Naruto as he sheathed his sword back to the holster and grabbed his mask, before wearing it once more.

"My style focuses more on strength than speed, hence why I needed to increase my muscle structure. But I believe you need to buy a better sword or a new one. I saw signs of rust coming from your ninjato. If you want, I can take you to a friend of mine to see a new sword for you, sempai?" - Asked Naruto, earning a nod from Kakashi as he threw his away, since he wouldn't need it any longer and joined Naruto while walking straight to the weapon shop.

* * *

**===At Akido's shop===**

It was a rather ordinary day for Akido when he opened his store to the public. Not many customers arrived today and the ones that did only need a couple of shurikens and kunais. The man was on the verge of sleeping on the counter when he heard sound of the bell that rang every time the front door opened. Upon looking up, he saw Naruto there and smiled at his favorite customer.

"Naruto-san, it's great to see a loyal customer, so how is the **Furiseirei** coming along?" - Asked Akido, before Naruto unsheathed it to show to the man.

"It feels heavier than before..." - Said Naruto as he was looking at the sword, but he saw that Akido was smiling, so he got his answer. "Anyway, Akido-san, I brought a new customer for you. I'm sure you know Hatake Kakashi, he is my sensei and currently in search of a good sword" - Said Naruto, as Akido greeted the son of Sakumo.

"Ah, it's good that you're advertising my shop, now what type of sword are you looking for Kakashi-san?" - Asked Akido to which Kakashi smiled and went to look at the vast display of swords that hanged on the wall.

"I'm used to the ninjato and I rely on speed different from Naruto who relies on strength. The material would need to be resistant, since I don't want my student to chop my head off because my sword couldn't parry his. I was wondering, though, about the name you gave to Naruto's sword" - Asked Kakashi as he noticed that Naruto was already on the other side of the store, looking at some brandy new kunais.

"That sword was forged a long time ago, the history is lost though. Actually, it was Naruto who gave this name to the sword. I don't know why, though. So do you see any sword you like?" - Asked Akido, earning a nod from Kakashi as he grabbed one that was held on the far wall. Its holster was unique and the minute Kakashi laid eyes on it, he remembered his father Shiroi Kiba (White Fang). The holster was painted with a coloration of white that resembled the ice and a gray wolf was engraved in it.

"That's indeed a great sword you picked Kakashi-san. Its metal is light but very resistant; it will fit nicely to your sword style. Now would you like to test it or you're already satisfied?" - Asked Akido, before Kakashi said that he was satisfied, before they went to the counter to finish the purchase.

"If by chance, you're in need of repairing it, you can come here and I'll do it myself" - Said Akido as he took the money from Kakashi and placed it inside the register. After Kakashi strapped the sword on his back, he and Naruto left the store while Kakashi was taking a closer look at the sword. The silver haired Jounin couldn't help but marvel upon feeling how light the sword was.

"Kakashi-sempai, if you don't mind, I'll take my leave. There are some important things that need to be taken care of. Anytime you wish to test your new sword, you can call me. I'll be here for two weeks" - Said Naruto, before turning and walking aimlessly with hands on pocket, while Kakashi watched him from afar. He remembered the strength behind Naruto's technique to the point that his arm became slightly numb from the impact. Whether this was a result from his lack of skills in Kenjutsu or because of his old sword, he didn't know, but the fact remained that his student was coming along nicely and would no doubt, surpass him in no time.

Smiling for no reason, Kakashi sheathed his sword and went the other way.

* * *

**===At the Hokage's office===**

Tsunade was busy reading a report about a failed B mission near Earth Country when she heard a familiar voice.

"Here was I thinking you wouldn't be happy to see me, Tsu-hime?" - Asked Jiraiya, as he entered through the window and walked until he was in front of the blonde Hokage, who snorted.

"Well, if you managed to behave every once in a while, I wouldn't be pissed all the time. What is it that you want Jiraiya? As you can see, I'm kind of busy" - Said Tsunade while going back to her report, however while Jiraiya was smiling before, he suddenly became serious.

"Orochimaru is dead" - Said Jiraiya, dropping the nuclear bomb, before seeing the Hokage's eyes widen to the point he thought they were jumping out of their sockets. "One of my sources told me that he was dead and you will never guess who killed him" - Said Jiraiya, before Tsunade guessed right.

"Uchiha Sasuke" - Said Tsunade and Jiraiya nodded.

"Yesterday, Sasuke freed some prisoners from an isolated facility located in the middle of the ocean. I don't know if he asked to spread the word or not, but regardless of which..." - Said Jiraiya, until Tsunade nodded, since she didn't need more explanation.

"Am I correct to assume that he's not coming back to Konoha?" - Asked Tsunade, earning a smile and nod from Jiraiya.

"From what I know, he's gathered a group of individuals for his quest against his brother" - Said Jiraiya until he saw Tsunade get up from her chair and look outside her office towards the Hokage Monument where she knew Naruto would be.

"I wonder how will Sakura and Naruto take the news? Naruto is a wild card right now, I don't know what he thinks, but Sakura still has feelings for the Uchiha in more ways than I wish she did, but she has. I wouldn't be surprised if she wanted to go after him one more time, what do you think?" - Asked Tsunade.

"Hum, I could be wrong but I don't think that Naruto will have the same intentions regarding going to Sasuke. It won't matter anyway, as soon as he leaves once more, he'll meet Sasuke but with another purpose" - Said Jiraiya, but he saw Tsunade negate with her head and waited her explanation.

"Sasuke is not in the bingo book Jiraiya, Sakura requested me that of me and I ended up granting it. Also, a couple of people came in this morning with a proposition in order to restrain Naruto from continuing his hunter-nin job and I accepted. Naruto is strong, but he will be facing A ranked missing-nins now and they were composed of Konoha's elite. Plus, Akatsuki stopped falling for your counter-intelligence, what guarantee you give me that he will be safe?" - Asked Tsunade.

"He's not going to like it Tsu-hime; that I'm sure of it. I imagine who came to talk to you, since there are only a few of us who knows of his hunter-nin position. How do you plan on telling him?" - Asked Jiraiya, before seeing the serious look she was showing.

"I don't know yet, I'll think of something when we inform both him and Sakura about Orochimaru's death" - Said Tsunade, before Jiraiya nodded.

* * *

=**==With Naruto===**

Still walking around Konoha, Naruto was suddenly in front of an abandoned two-story house, before entering. Once inside, he saw nothing, but a white seal engraved on the wall to the left. He, then, placed his hands on the seal, before channeling some chakra to it.

A hidden door suddenly took shape and Naruto entered before the door closed with him inside. Instantly, whereas darkness engulfed his path before, suddenly lamps went on, illuminating the long set of stairs. The place where Naruto was going, was close to fifty feet below ground so it took a while to reach the end of the stairs, only to see a person he thought he would never see again. Kira was arranging what appeared to be some documents before looking up and smiled.

"Naruto-kun, is that you? Oh my god, I missed you, where have you been?" - Said Kira as she hugged Naruto. The blond returned the hug, though he remained like that.

"Hello Kira, indeed it's been a while, I just returned to the village for some vacations. Is the boss here?" - Asked Naruto, earning a nod followed by a hand pointing the direction to his office. Naruto, then, walked towards where Kira pointed while admiring the new office. Gaeshi-sama was always a rather reserved individual, so Naruto would guess that the man wanted a place where he wouldn't be disturbed.

Upon opening the heavy blue door, he saw the Hunter-nin Commander and took off his mask, before kneeling on the ground.

"Greetings Gaeshi-sama" - Said Naruto as he bowed in respect.

"Ah Naruto, my favorite hunter, you don't need to kneel. I've seen you've been busy from the heads that we received. And I guess you wanted a new copy of the bingo book, am I right?" - Asked Gaeshi, but he saw Naruto negate with his head.

"No sir, I was hoping to see if you could provide world-wide bingo book, containing not only Konoha's, but also from the other villages" - Asked Naruto, earning a smile from Gaeshi. The man was turning to like Naruto even more now.

"Sure I do, although Konoha's will be smaller since the only ones left are A and S ranked ninjas. Somehow, your reputation is stopping people from betraying us and I believe that's a good thing. Don't get me wrong, Sandaime, Yondaime and the Godaime are honorable leaders, but they happened to be too lenient on those who wished to betray us. I'll ask Kira to make a copy of my bingo book and give it to you. I trust that you will now hunt for the A ranked ones" - Said Gaeshi to which Naruto nodded.

"Also, I happen to know that some A ranked missing-nins may be associated with missing-nins from other villages, hence why I want to be prepared in case this happens" - Said Naruto, earning a smile from Gaeshi as he buzzed for Kira to make a copy of his bingo book, before Naruto heard her voice on the radio, acknowledging the order.

"Kira is on vacation from the hospital and I asked her to help move some papers around" - Said Gaeshi, earning a nod from Naruto as minutes after, the girl handed him an extended version of the bingo book.

"I appreciate it Gaeshi-sama, I must take my leave now" - Said Naruto, earning a nod from Gaeshi as Naruto returned to the same place he entered the hideout and left from the other side of the abandoned house, before heading to his new home.

* * *

**===At the Inuzuka Residence===**

After Naruto left the Hunter-nin commander, he went straight for his girlfriend's house, seeing as Tsume invited him for dinner. The blond did protest to the fact that Kiba may know his identity, but both Tsume and Hana assured him that Kiba belonged to the most trustworthy clan in Konoha and even if he knew, he wouldn't tell a soul.

Nevertheless, Naruto wasn't prepared when the youngest member of the family saw him without the mask. Akamaru was already being petted by Naruto, but Kiba just stayed there with his mouth open, as in wondering what the hell is going on. Ever since his promotion to Jounin, Kiba changed his appearance and lost that black leather jacket, going, instead, for a fishnet t-shirt and the standard Jounin vest. After a while, Kiba slapped himself in the face and finally decided to send a barrage of questions to the hunter-nin, like where he was and why he decided to become a hunter-nin.

Naruto, for some unfathomable reason, thanked the heavens that Kiba didn't think to ask the reason he was inside his house, because then he would have to explain that he was dating his sister for some time now and it could get ugly, if boy becomes too overprotective of his big sister.

Right now, both Kiba and Naruto were discussing in the living-room about what happened with the Konoha 9 since Naruto was gone, while Akamaru was taking a nap right next to them.

"So, Kiba I take it from the vest, that you managed to become a Jounin. I'd say congratulations are in order. Who else, besides Neji and Shikamaru?" - Asked Naruto, before seeing the male Inuzuka smile at the appraisal.

"Actually Naruto, the only one who haven't progressed yet is you. Hinata was the last one who achieved the rank of Jounin and Neji's team was drafted by Anbu just recently. How about you, though?" - Asked Kiba, before Naruto snorted.

"I don't have any interest in rising in rank right now Kiba. During my travels, I faced a lot of tough missing-nins whom I believe were Jounin level shinobi. I guess ranks don't mean that much to me nowadays" - Explained Naruto, but Kiba didn't agree with the blond.

"Are you kidding? Being a Jounin has its perks, you have a bigger salary, access to high level Jutsus, not to mention the respect that comes along with the job. Weren't you the one who kept shouting about being Hokage? You won't be able to unless you reach the rank of Jounin" - Asked Kiba, before seeing Naruto shrugging with his shoulder.

When he was about to speak, though, he stopped dead in his tracks, upon hearing Hana calling for him in a rather intimate tone of voice.

"Naru-kun, where are you? Oh there you are. I was wondering if you'd care for a little walk after dinner" - Asked Hana, to which Naruto nodded, while looking for Kiba, before frowning in dismay once he saw the enraged look on Kiba's face.

"NARRRUTO, are you dating my sister?" - Snarled Kiba on the verge of exploding with anger, but instead of trying to run, Naruto just stood there unfazed by the boy's pathetic excuse of a killing intent. Hana, however, chose to speak on her boyfriend's behalf.

"Yes, we are Kiba. I was meaning to tell you soon. Actually, we've dating for several months now" - Explained Hana as she embraced Naruto from behind with a clear intent of teasing her little brother and using Naruto for the show. The blond did acknowledge his girlfriend's attempt at teasing and got up to walk alongside Hana outside, leaving a red Kiba in anger.

Naruto didn't have to count to three until he had to dodge a tackle from Kiba, while Hana did as well, since the boy would hit her as well. Now, since Hana stepped out, Kiba focused straight on Naruto.

"How dare you Naruto, she is my sister and you're my friend. How dare you!!" - Shouted Kiba, before began spinning in a Tsuuga attack straight at the blond who in turn cursed Kiba for attacking him when he couldn't use his chakra. Actually, he could use but he had a compromise with Kyuubi not to use it until the flow returned to normal.

Inches only separating them, Naruto dodged the incoming vortex, before seeing Kiba making a left turn while still spinning, before attacking him once more. Deciding to use other shinobi abilities that do not require chakra, Naruto took a couple of smoke bombs and threw them on the ground, before a large black smoke appeared, thus confusing Kiba who in turn stopped spinning and landed inside the fog.

Just as Naruto was about to approach Kiba, however, Kiba sensed his arrival and jumped out of the way in time, before the fog dissipated.

"Why are you attacking me Kiba?" - Asked Naruto as he saw Kiba was still snarling at the blond.

"You took advantage of my sister Naruto, I don't need more explanations" - Said Kiba, before charging once more at Naruto who sighed and closed his eyes for a moment. He hadn't use Taijutsu in a long time, but he just couldn't attack Kiba with his sword, unless he wanted to kill him. Upon opening his eyes, he saw that Kiba was mere inches from impaling him with his claws, before Naruto dodged to the right at the last minute, confusing Kiba because he thought he reached the blond, however his confusion cost him dearly as Naruto managed to land a precise punch right below Kiba's right shoulder, which was in fact one of the known pressure points of the human anatomy.

Kiba simply closed his eyes and fell asleep instantly as Hana appeared with Tsume in tow.

"What happened here, Naruto and why is my son on the ground?" - Asked Tsume, before seeing Naruto sigh in dismay.

"Kiba found out about me and Hana-chan and went ballistic on me. Don't worry, though, I aimed my punch at a pressure point that is linked to the spinal cord. He was asleep before he fell on the ground. He will wake up in an hour the most" - Explained Naruto, earning a nod from Tsume as Akamaru came and placed his master on his back before taking him back to his room.

After seeing the big white dog vanish inside the compound, Tsume decided to go with the couple for a little walk as they discussed some things.

"Naruto, while I appreciate you taking care of my hot-headed son while not endangering him, I was wondering about something" - Said Tsume as Naruto looking at her before she continued. "Why didn't you use chakra? I mean, Kiba is a Jounin and facing a ninja of that level without the use of chakra, requires skills. I would like to assume that you weren't showing off, right?" - Asked Tsume, before seeing the hunter-nin negate with his head.

"The reason why I didn't use chakra is because I need to ease the flow of it before I return to the hunting. Right now, any technique I use will strain my chakra coils to dangerous levels. After all, I ended up using chakra for a whole year, non-stop, this was bound to happen sooner or later. I wonder, now, what will happen now Kiba knows about my relationship with Hana; facing him all the time isn't in my plans right now" - Asked Naruto, earning a snicker from Hana and Tsume to nod.

"Kiba is too hot-headed, indeed. But once he's beaten to the ground, he will subside. Not to mention the fact that it's the second time you beat my son by using....'alternative' methods" - Smiled Tsume, before seeing the ashamed look on Naruto's face upon remembering what he used to beat Kiba in the past.

"I still wished that wouldn't happen. At the time, my chakra control was lousy because of a seal Orochimaru placed on me, hence why I, at the time, focused too much chakra and well, you all know the outcome" - Explained Naruto, earning a dismissive nod from Tsume who smile and then offered them to return for the compound.

* * *

**===in a desert area – unknown location===**

After gathering the last member of the team that will be responsible for aiding him in achieving his goal, the Uchiha was heading towards a place where his clan used for weapon and medicine supplies. Although on the outside, Sasuke remained cool and distant, inside, he was cursing his companions Karin and Suigetsu who were busy screaming bad remarks to each other.

As he walked, though, something kept playing on his mind about information he overheard Kabuto and Orochimaru talking. Sasuke remembered that Kabuto was on edge because of a new hunter-nin from Konoha who was responsible for killing the entire B ranked section of the bingo book, namely Jounin level shinobi. Upon hearing the name, Sasuke's mind processed and began to associate the name hunter-fox with a certain blond nuisance.

Even though Sasuke was considered A ranked, because of the Sharingan and the fact that he was training under Orochimaru's tutelage, he couldn't help but wonder if this hunter-fox would be after him as well. Frowning in dismay at having someone hot on his trail, Sasuke considered relying on his team to take care of him. Juugo was a nutcase, but a chakra powerhouse and Suigetsu was almost indestructible because of his water-like constitution. Only Sasuke knew how to beat Suigetsu and that was either using lightning attacks which would flow throughout his body and shock him to death or use a potent fire technique that would evaporate every water cells from his body.

Going through Naruto's known abilities, Sasuke could not detect one skill that would be able to beat Suigetsu. The Rasengan, though strong, would just hit water and Shadow clones attacking wouldn't be different. Now, it has been a long time since he met with the dobe and there is a possibility that he already learned elemental attacks, which would prove to be troublesome, since he could use any of the most taxing chakra techniques without even sweating and that was indeed troublesome.

Sasuke didn't even count Sakura into the mix, because she didn't even deserve his attention. He very well knew that the girl was apprenticed to the Sannin Tsunade, but her abilities bends towards medical Ninjutsu which is useless in the field.

Just as he was about to ponder more about the subject, he felt the need to sigh in dismay as he heard yet another bickering courtesy of both Karin and Suigetsu.

"Move your ass, Suigetsu or we'll leave you behind" - Shouted Karin as she saw him drinking water like crazy because of the desert's hot temperature. Glaring at the infuriating girl for a while, he suddenly remembered that the girl always said she had to go somewhere before.

"Don't you have somewhere to go Karin? Stop bugging me and keep walking, I'll reach you guys in the end" - Said Suigetsu, before seeing Karin begin to tremble in rage as he passed through her and Juugo who in turn found the discussion quite amusing.

Suddenly, though, Sasuke stopped and looked at what appeared to be an abandoned city, before issuing his team to follow suit.

* * *

**===Inside a cave – unknown location===**

There was a reason why no one ever found where Akatsuki's hideout was, simply because they kept on the move. Right now, the remnants of the group gathered their astral projections around a lamp as they debated on the next course of action.

"Itachi, Kisame, report your findings about the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki? - Said Pein to which Itachi nodded.

"We spotted Naruto inside a hotel in Fire Country and moved to subdue him, however we didn't count for him to trick us by using the mass shadow clone technique as a distraction before escaping" - Began Itachi, until he heard the new member Tobi speaking in a child tone.

"Tricked by a teenager Itachi-sempai? I'd imagine that the almighty Uchiha clan wouldn't be fooled so easily, ne?" - Said Tobi, before seeing Kisame snarl because he was also tricked by the Jinchuuriki, but Itachi was unfazed as he proceeded with his report.

"We have reasons to believe that Uzumaki Naruto is not the same goofy, hot-headed shinobi from before as I detected a level of confidence particular to someone of our level. I have yet to determine his new skills, because so far he didn't use anything apart from the two techniques he's known for. However, records from Konoha indicated that he is still a Genin, since he didn't apply for any Chuunin exams after the one before the Sand-Sound invasion" - Reported Itachi, earning a nod from Pein.

"Do you have his position now, Itachi, Kisame?" - Asked the leader, before he saw both negating with their head until Kisame chose to elaborate further.

"The brat is slippery, until now, we had no luck tracking his lead, even after we stopped following the Sannin Jiraiya's traces, but they did managed to kill the Zombie Combo because of it; whether he returned to Konoha or not, we don't have a clue" - Explained Kisame, earning a nod from the leader, before he began to think.

"Itachi, Kisame, I'll be tracking the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki personally. First, however, we must eliminate our spy in Konoha before they discover anything. He knows of the Doujutsu secret and as such, became too high of a liability. Zetsu will be hunting Danzou and kill him. For now, you two will focus on tracking the eight-tailed Jinchuuriki" - Explained Pein, earning a nod from the others, before their astral projections faded, leaving only Pein and Tobi to discuss.

Turning to the orange mask, Pein asked what his thoughts were on this manner to which the man responded, this time with a normal voice.

"The rinnegan is still a secret to everyone, hence why you have the advantage in case of a confrontation. However, the chances of you running into the Sannin Jiraiya are too high and he will be tough to beat. Not to mention Hatake Kakashi and some of that village's elite shinobi. Should you go alone, you'll end up facing multiple foes and I can't just sacrifice you needlessly. After all, you're a key part to my plan. For now, focus on tracking him, using Konan. Once you do, try luring him to a trap and capture him. According to Itachi, the kid is a goof and will fall for it pretty easily" - Explained Tobi, before a sudden Sharingan eye appeared on the mask hole.

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

The next day, Naruto was peaceful inside his new home, sleeping when he heard someone knocking on his door. Immediately, he tensed. No one knew he was there and he doubted Hana would be here so early in the morning. Sleeping in late was one of the perks of having a job in the village. Grabbing his sword, Naruto began to walk towards the door like a trained assassin, focusing on lessening his steps so as not make any noises that would alert his presence.

Close to the door, was a window that Naruto could see and when he lifted the drapes slightly, the blond had the decency to sigh upon seeing his ex-sensei Kakashi with his arms crossed. Leave it to ex-Anbu Captain Sharingan no Kakashi to find out where Naruto now lived. Upon opening the door, he saw his sensei greet with his hand up and a smile.

"YO Naruto" - Greeted Kakashi, before he saw the look of pure murder coming from the one who was beginning to wonder how hard it will be to maintain his identity a secret with people like Kakashi shouting his name to the crowd.

"Kakashi-senpai, would you please not call me by my name, I'm trying to keep my presence here a secret. And how the hell did you find me?" - Asked Naruto, before seeing a smirk on the Jounin's face.

"Sorry about the name calling, I'll stop. Also, I went to your old apartment but it was empty. Pretty clever of you placing the name hunter-fox as the owner of this place. I've had to call favors with a friend of mine to get this information" - Said Kakashi, before seeing Naruto sigh and open the door for Kakashi to enter.

Once inside, Kakashi was looking at the decoration and found it strange to see pictures of the sea and some landscapes of Sea Country, before he listened to Naruto as he was going for the kitchen.

"I recently acquired this place from a businessman from Sea Country. I didn't bother taking those pictures off, since I won't be in the village for long. So, you are still due to explain what is it do you need Kakashi-senpai" - Said Naruto, earning the silver haired Jounin's attention.

"Tsunade-sama wants to talk to us about something important that came up. She is expecting us in half an hour" - Stated Kakashi, earning a snort from Naruto, who in turn couldn't figure what the old hag wanted with him and Kakashi, seeing as hunter-nins travels alone.

It didn't take long for Naruto to dress up his hunter-nin attire and leave the apartment with Kakashi straight for the Hokage's office where he saw the old hag sleeping.

* * *

**===At the Hokage's office===**

After entering the office, Naruto and Kakashi sighed seeing that the Hokage was snoring. To Naruto, this was new, since he did spend the last year outside the village, but Kakashi was accustomed to it, so he shrugged and grabbed a book to read, while hanging close to the far wall of the room.

Naruto saw the man and went to the Hokage's Shelf of books for something interesting to read. Upon looking at the titles, he recognized one regarding advanced human anatomy that perked his interest. So, he picked it and went near Kakashi to mimic him but with a different book, however his book choice wasn't missed by his sensei who in turn wondered why Naruto would interest in knowing about the human body.

Naruto noticed the look of question from his sensei.

"Weird huh? Ever since I learned how to hit pressure points, I've became more interested in advanced anatomy lessons. There are several key areas in the body that upon receiving pressure, sends an specific information to the brain. You do remember the episode with Zabuza, right? Well, it's the same thing." - Said Naruto, before returning to his rather large book.

Kakashi nodded, before returning to his book as well. Suddenly, though, both of them sensed someone entering through the window, but returned to their affairs once they realized who was it.

Jiraiya was expecting to be scowled by Tsunade for him entering through the window, but sadly for him, the woman was asleep in his office. Looking around, the pervert noticed Kakashi reading his icha icha book and another person wearing a leather jacket and the hunternin mask reading what appeared to be one of Tsunade's boring medical books. He took a while, but realized that the man was his student Naruto.

Actually, the scene was quite comical, Jiraiya smiled. He could see the resemblance from their posture and the fact that Tsunade was fast asleep gave him a funny idea. Immediately grabbing a book of his own, Jiraiya went to the wall and stood next to Naruto while maintaining the same reading position as Kakashi and Naruto.

And this was the scene that first greeted Tsunade upon waking up as a water drop could be seen on the back of her head. She could see that neither of them realized she was already up.

"May I ask why you three are standing like this?" - Asked Tsunade, before seeing all three of them look at them in much the same time and same movement, but the interesting and most comical part of it all was the same timed answer.

"You said something Tsunade-sama?"- Said all three of them at the same time, earning this time a enraged look on the Hokage's face, before she focused on the book the hunternin was reading and smiled.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were interested in learning medical jutsus, Shi (**Naruto's hunternin codename**)" - Said Tsunade before looking at Naruto to see his reaction to her question.

"Actually, I'm just learning on specific points to hit my enemies, sometimes it's good to improvise in the field Tsunade-sama. I appreciate the book, I didn't know that one straight hit on a specific part of the neck and the enemy's neck is broken. Most interesting, what else can I use here, let's see..." - Said Naruto as he returned to the book, not bothering to see Tsunade's irritated face upon seeing the knowledge of medical jutsu used to kill people. However, she didn't fault Naruto for thinking like this, since he was a hunter-nin after all.

"Well, Sakura would have to be here as well for what I'm about to tell, but since your presence here is to remain a secret, I'll talk to her later. Yesterday, Jiraiya brought information on Uchiha Sasuke's whereabouts" - Said Tsunade, stopping for a while in order to gauge some reaction from the blond to the news, but found nothing. "Uchiha Sasuke killed Orochimaru" - Concluded Tsunade, before seeing Kakashi show a momentary face of surprise before going back to his lazy display.

"Ok, then I guess it's one less S ranked missing-nin in the list to hunt in the future, so what's next? Considering that he's still due to go after Itachi" - Asked Naruto, earning a nod from Tsunade, who in turn looked at Jiraiya to see that he was smiling at her as in saying that he was right, Naruto didn't give a shit about the Uchiha.

"Given your response, am I wrong to assume you don't want to bring him back? I know for a fact, that Sakura will ask for a mission like this. What are your thoughts on this?" - Asked Tsunade.

"Sasuke is considered an A ranked missing-nin, hence why he'll be on my list as soon as I set foot out of the village, so it doesn't really matter assigning a mission" - Said Naruto, earning a nod from Tsunade, until he continued. "Unless, of course, you didn't declare him a missing-nin, I've checked an updated version of the bingo book and he wasn't there?" - Asked Naruto, but the silence that soon followed served as a better answer. "I see...Well Sakura will demand a rescue mission, then. I don't know if she changed at all during the time I was gone, but the fact remains that the only person in Konoha who still worships him is her. In the end, though, it's not my problem" - Concluded Naruto, dismissing the issue as if nothing happened.

Seeing the silence in the conversation, Kakashi decided to add another item to the discussion.

"Do you have more info about him, Jiraiya-sama? I know that Naruto is not interested in him, but as his sensei, I want to know everything about my students" - Asked Kakashi, earning a nod from Jiraiya.

"He gathered three allies to aid him in his quest for vengeance. One of them was next in line to take Momochi Zabuza's place at the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist and the other was the man that allowed Orochimaru to create the cursed seal. The last member of the team is a girl that can sense chakra from a distance. Only Suigetsu has affiliation with the mist hidden village. Their skills, though, remain unknown for now" - Reported Jiraiya, before Kakashi nodded. Naruto, though, felt that his presence was no longer needed.

"Well, since you don't need me here, I'll take my leave" - Said Naruto, before turning for the door, but was stopped by Tsunade who shouted his real name this time.

"Naruto, wait a minute...." - Said Tsunade, earning the hunter-nin's attention, before she continued. "There is another manner that I wish to speak with you."

"What is it, Hokage-sama?" - Asked Naruto as he turned to face the Hokage with suspicion. Normally, a Hokage wouldn't need to discuss much with a hunter-nin, rather his next target. Also, the fact that Kyuubi was going haywire inside his head was any indication that what he won't like what Tsunade have to say.

Also, the conversation relating Sasuke was over so both Jiraiya and Kakashi looked at him as in only waiting for Tsunade to open her mouth, before they could gauge his reaction.

"Naruto, I want to talk about your position as a hunter-nin, if I may. You see, just as the requirements necessary for joining Anbu which is obtain the rank of Chuunin or higher, in order to join the hunter-nin division, you would have to obtain the rank of Chuunin or higher as well" - Said Tsunade, before waiting for any sort of retort coming from Naruto, but none came, so she continued. "I know you did well on the job, in fact the Hunter-nin chief spoke highly of you, however being just a Genin, you just don't have the set of mind necessary to cope with this job. On several occasions, I heard Gamakichi say that you changed ever since you left, hence why it's imperial that you at least upgrade in rank, before thinking on going against the A ranked missing-nins" - Explained Tsunade.

Naruto, while hearing, didn't want to interrupt the Hokage until she was finished, but the fact remained that this 'rank requirement' didn't bode well with the blond, simply because he didn't have to convince anyone in the past to let him go, other than the Hokage trying to reason with him as a friend, rather because of the position. Also, the fact that Tsunade waited until now to tell, was clear to Naruto, that something or someone asked her to do this and Naruto didn't need to think hard to know that only those who knew about his hunter-nin position would come to ask such a thing.

_My guess is that Hana came in requesting this to the Hokage, what you think?" - Asked the blond to the other mind inside his body. _

"**Indeed, you're correct. I'm impressed, though, you'd suspect her. What will you do now?" - **Asked the fox, before he saw Naruto sigh in dismay.

_I believe my options here are reduced to obeying the Hokage's orders. I don't believe this!!! She is actually willing to risk the wellbeing of the village just because for me. It'll be even harder to keep my identity a secret this way, I'll have to negotiate the mask" - _Said Naruto, before he blinked only to see that Tsunade was waiting for a response.

"Seeing as this is a requirement in order to become a hunter-nin, which I doubt it, but I'll do as the Hokage commands. After all, if I counted right, the next Chuunin exams will be held at Iwa in a month" - Said Naruto while seeing shocked looks from those in the room, before he crossed his arms and focused his glare on Tsunade. "Let me ask you a question, though, Hokage-sama and I want you to answer as this village's leader" - Asked Naruto, before seeing Tsunade frown, but nodded.

"What will happen once Akatsuki realizes who I am and comes here to get me? Seeing as they're a known and feared enemy, you'll place your entire ninja force against S ranked missing-nin who could destroy the entire village landscape with one single technique and kill a lot of people before being subdued by our forces, if such a thing happens. Would you bare the guilt of knowing that you could've avoided all this by simply letting me do my job?" - Asked Naruto, before Tsunade realized just what the boy feared.

"The welfare of a hidden village cannot fall on just one ninja, Naruto. That's a burden not even a Hokage can bare and what happened to Asuma isn't in any way related to your presence in Konoha or not. Asuma was a shinobi and as such, he was ready to face the consequences" - Explained Tsunade, but Naruto was lost the moment that name was mentioned.

He, then, turned so that the tears that was now falling wouldn't be seen by anyone, but himself. They were tears upon imagining what would happen in case his precious people were killed.

"I...just don't know if I could bear the burden of being the one responsible for the deaths of those I hold precious to my heart" - Said Naruto before he left, while hoping beyond hope that no one would see him crying, but to the trained eye, Jiraiya, Kakashi and Tsunade could very well see a single tear falling and sighed in sadness.

After he closed the door, the heavy air that filled the Hokage's office dissipated and the Hokage let out her breath she didn't know she was holding and looked at Jiraiya and Kakashi for a moment, before Jiraiya spoke.

"So hard it's the path of the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki" - Said Jiraiya to no one, before he turned to Tsunade. "Since the Chuunin exams in Iwa does not require a team of Genins, I believe you'll send only him to represent Konoha" - Said Jiraiya, before he saw Tsunade nod, before he continued. "Then I wish to be the one to act as his Jounin-sensei, no offense Kakashi, but I believe that Naruto is ready for the same training his father went through and only I can teach him" - Said Jiraiya, before seeing Kakashi nod and leave in a Shunshin away.

"So you're planning on taking him to train with the toads?" - Asked Tsunade, serving rather as an statement as she saw Jiraiya smiling to her.

"I'm going to prepare him to be the strongest possible against Akatsuki" - Said Jiraiya, to which Tsunade nodded, before issuing the pervert to leave her alone for a moment, to which he understood and left through the door with the intent of finding his next prodigy.


	14. The path to greatness

_**AN**__**: before the chapter begins, I want to take the opportunity to express my displeasure at Kishimoto for how much godlike he transformed Uchiha Sasuke into. For cry sake, he faces all kage level ninjas and does not have a scratch on him. That leads me to wonder why Itachi wasn't like this if he trained much further with the Mangenkyou Sharingan. I've read KingKakashi's comments on the recent mangas and I concur with every word. **_

_**I wouldn't be surprised If even the Mizukage fails to beat the almighty Uchiha Sasuke, because from what I understood from Kishimoto's way of thinking, the only one who will be able to beat Sasuke will be Naruto. But still it unnerves me to see him winning every time. **_

_**Sorry…I had to vent out my frustrations somehow and now on with the chapter.**_

* * *

**Chapter 14 – The path to greatness**

**Beta: Dreetje**

* * *

Immediately after leaving the Hokage's Office, Naruto went to the only place he knew he could be alone and think about the major turn of events in his life. Everything he ever fought for, becoming the sacrifice of the village by going against the village' s enemies or even luring them away from the village, was all tossed aside by his girlfriend's plan and Tsunade's narrow-minded thinking.

What was that the Sandaime Hokage always taught? The needs of many overcome the needs of a few. As a follower of the Third Hokage, Tsunade should know this better than anyone and yet, here she is doing something like this, preventing the Kyuubi container from leaving the village and in time, surely, luring those who seek harm against the Leaf. As the blond looked at the village from above the Yondaime's head, he was at loss of what to do about this new situation. On one side, he kind of understood Hana's selfish desire to be with her boyfriend as the blond often considered meeting on more occasions with the Inuzuka, however she of all people should have known how much he suffered after Asuma's death at the hands of Akatsuki.

And on a further account, she would also know how much he would suffer by knowing that he was the sole reason why Akatsuki came in and destroyed everything in their path just for the sole desire to have the power of all the tailed demons.

"**You could very well use my power and vanish without anyone knowing about it, but I guess you have your morals and by doing such, you would be considered the very being you're sworn to hunt so passionately; a missing-nin" – **Said Kyuubi, which earned a nod from Naruto as he too considered the greater good of simply escaping and take on the enemies by himself, outside the village walls.

"_Not to mention having to worry about the forces Tsunade will definitely send after me should I do so. I don't have any other choice; I just hope that if Akatsuki chooses to hunt me here, then they'll do it once I'm already set to go to Iwa for the Chuunin exams; otherwise I fear that any type of battle would cause some serious damage to the village's structure and possibly some lives would be wasted because of it. Listen, how much time is needed for my chakra to return to its normal pace; I'll have to train more if we're to be prepared for those black robe bastards" – _Thought Naruto, before hearing a snicker from the fox, which actually sound more like an evil laughter if Naruto wasn't so accustomed to the sound.

"**Just another day and you will be able to use it freely. Normally, it wouldn't be due to a whole week more, but seeing as we are in a kind of hurry, well at least you are, I've taken preparations to decrease the time needed to normalize your chakra"** – Explained Kyuubi, earning a nod from Naruto.

Immediately cutting off his link with the fox, Naruto returned to Konoha gazing for some time while wondering about what would happen now that he was prohibited from leaving the village by the Hokage. Surely, he would need to address his commander and he knew the man wouldn't take it so well, probably as far as going over to the Hokage and demand some explanation. Suddenly, his sharp senses alerted him of steps reaching his location, before he relaxed upon sensing three others similar presences and only one person would walk around with three dogs.

"I thought I'd meet you here Naruto-kun, may I join you?" – Asked Hana, before seeing the blond nod while caressing one of her dogs. After seeing, Hana got to look down at her home with stars in her eyes. The sight was something else entirely, however when she was about to comment about it, she immediately sensed that something was bothering him greatly. It wasn't until he talked, that she felt her heart ache a bit.

"I know it was you who talked to the Hokage about me staying in Konoha, Hana-chan" – Said Naruto, before hearing a sigh from the woman he hold dear in his heart, perhaps it was because of this feeling, that he didn't yell, shout or even demand any sort of explanation. However, by getting caught, he could see it had an effect on her once cheerful behavior. "Don't be sad like this Hana-chan; remembering your smile at the end of the day is what saves me from becoming a cold blooded murderer as my job demands of me. The problem, though, is that you very well know that my presence here can attract those who seek the fox and for that, they would destroy everything…everything" – Explained Naruto, earning a nod from Hana as she was now fearing that her boyfriend didn't like the thought of spending more time with her as she initially hoped he would be.

"I know that you want for us to hang out more than on rare occasions or through letters and this is something we both want. Believe me Hana-chan, that there is nothing more important to me than being around you and seeing that smile of yours. But, if anything were to happen to you and those whom I care for, I wouldn't know what to do…I…" – Said Naruto, before being surprised at Hana's sudden act of pure romantic impulse, taking off his mask and landing one passionate hot kiss on his lips. Recovering from the initial shock, the blond returned the kiss with possibly the same passion and even embraced her in a big hug.

After separating from the kiss, Naruto and Hana locked eyes for an instant, just feeling content by looking at each other's eyes, since words wouldn't quite express what each felt for the other. In fact, Naruto was so at ease by looking at her eyes that for the first time since he left the village to become a hunter-nin, he was caught off guard. Luckily for him, though, the four presences that now stood in front of the couple were none other than his girlfriend's mother Tsume and brother Kiba, accompanied by their respective dogs.

As Hana looked, surprised, at her family, Tsume laughed at her daugher's sheepish and rather flustered look on her face.

"I see that by the look on Naruto's face that he already knows, Hana-chan?" – Asked Tsume, earning a nod from Hana and a secret smile from Naruto upon realizing that maybe Hana wasn't the only one convincing Tsunade to set out some new boundaries to becoming a hunter-nin.

"Yes, Tsunade-sama just told me about it Tsume. I didn't know, though, that you were behind this little scheme" – Smiled Naruto, upon seeing the immediate reaction of both Inuzuka ladies as they covered their mouth in shock at being caught; Kiba, obviously, was lost in the conversation, if the look of his face was any indication, but the fact remained that he owed some apologies for the blond for attacking Naruto like he did.

"Uh Naruto, uh…I wanted to apologize for my reckless behavior that night. I guess that upon seeing you two together, my blood boiled and I was seeing red, I'm sorry" – Said Kiba, while trying to meet with the blond's strangely firm gaze on him. Right now, Kiba didn't know which Naruto was scarier, him with or without the mask. Suddenly, though, a slight quirk to Naruto's lips was seen and the Inuzuka male relaxed somewhat.

"You don't need to apologize to me Kiba; Hana did tell me you're a bit overprotective of her from time to time. In the end, no one was badly injured" – Said Naruto, but Kiba's snort amused the blond as he knew the side effects of hitting Kiba where he did.

"Yeah, speak for yourself…After I woke up, I had the worst headache ever. What was it that you do to me again? Okaasan explained to me but I didn't understand a thing" – Said Kiba, earning a snort in response from his mother, before Naruto responded.

"Basically, I hit you in a specific place in your body that happens to send some neural information to your brain, after being submitted to at least a considerate amount of pressure. That information happened to shut your body to the world and you instantly fainted; also the headache was because of the sudden flow of information, overwhelming your brain" – Explained Naruto, earning a respectful nod from Kiba, but still this form of skill was alien to him.

Naruto, then, remembered something that he forgot to ask Kiba and immediately took care of it.

"Kiba, may I ask you one thing. Because of some movement restrictions placed on me, my license as a hunter-nin is currently suspended, hence why I cannot leave the village, until I set out for the Chuunin exams in fifteen days. My presence here, though, must remain a secret. Your mother told me that the Inuzuka Clan has loyalty as a second nature so I ask that you refrain from revealing my identity or even mentioning that I'm in the village" – Asked Naruto, before seeing the questioned look that his friend was displaying right now.

"Why can't I tell? What's so important that I can't even say you are in the village? You have friends as well, you know. Everyone has been barging on the Hokage's office, demanding to hear about you and now that you're here, you don't want anyone to know that, why would you want this?" – Asked Kiba, ignoring the berating voice of both his sister and his mother after his outburst.

Naruto, though, wasn't fazed at all about this revelation as the pain of hiding himself from them was nothing compared to the thought of losing them because of Akatsuki knowing about his position.

"Kiba, all I can say is that I've made some seriously powerful enemies during my travels and if they come after me, no force in Konoha would be able to keep them away without the entire village being destroyed or greatly harmed" – Explained Naruto, but unsurprisingly to him, Kiba was skeptical about it all. How could he blame him, though? He didn't know half of it, hence why the story would seem a little bit exaggerating. Hana and Tsume, though, chose not to question Naruto about not revealing the Kyuubi part of the conversation and who were the enemies that would come after him. "The minute someone else knows that I'm here, news will certainly spread and I can't have that" – Concluded Naruto.

Truthfully, though, Naruto couldn't curse more at this unorthodox predicament, not to mention completely against his 'not trusting anyone so easily policy'. However, Kiba could very well open his big mouth to someone like Sakura and then, Naruto's every attempt at continuing his hunter-nin career would be flushed down the toilet and that wasn't something he planned on letting happening any time soon.

"I still don't know why you don't want anyone to know about this, but since you brought the loyalty of the Inuzuka Clan on the table, I guess I have no choice but to comply…I'll keep my mouth shut about the whole thing" – Said Kiba, earning a nod from Naruto before he picked up the hunter-nin mask and placed it on his face once more. Afterwards, the group threw some light conversation about Naruto going on the Chuunin exams in Iwa, before each of them went on different ways.

Naruto went to Konoha's real estate office because he needed to register the property of the other two apartments and also place an add on the newspaper that he was placing these two to rent, being his intention all along. Naruto never considered himself well-versed in financial subjects, but during his travels, he often had conversations with business travelers around the world, who advised him in regards to what he needed to do in order to raise his income at the end of the month. Some said that he could contact the bank for some investment funds, but Naruto didn't like the idea of looking at the stock market every single day, so he instead choose to invest in real estate by purchasing apartments and place them for rent. By doing this, not only he received the money from the killings, but he also would receive more incomes by each rent he receives. The blond's target was to purchase a well-sized house in the future for when he settle down in life. Hana was the person that always came to mind when he thought about his future, but it was far too soon for him to even consider marrying her.

Not that he wasn't passionate about the girl, which he was; but the fact remained that he needed a steady income to be able to supply both her and their eventual family in the future and even though the hunter-nin job was worth it, Naruto wouldn't be able to do this forever if he planned on settling down. For now, though, the future must remain like that in his mind and to focus only on the present. As soon as he walked inside his apartment, he began to scan the new bingo book his commander supplied to him and Naruto was surprised to see that Kira made some adjustments to the book by adding subdivisions (Konoha and Other Villages). Just because he couldn't work as a hunter-nin for Konoha, that doesn't mean he couldn't openly hunt those from other villages and collect the respective rewards, because by doing this, not only he gets to free the world of criminals in the future, but also manages to stop missing-nins from different countries from forming groups, like the Akatsuki.

So, he made some instant ramen and sat at the kitchen table while inspecting his next assignment.

* * *

**===At the Hokage's office===**

Revising the last mission reports of the day, Tsunade sighed in relief upon finally finishing them. It was already late at night and she should very well be sleeping at her house or even having some sake, but no…Shizune just had to bring these damn reports seconds before Tsunade left the office. The Hokage even tried to reason with her pain in the ass assistant, but in the end, Shizune, once more, had the upper hand and convinced her to stay and read the last reports. The Administration Building was pretty much empty save for the Hokage's secretary and a couple of Anbu agents that were supposed to protect the Hokage at all times.

Because of this, Tsunade could hear even a pin dropping on the floor of the hallway. Suddenly, though, as she got up from her chair, she heard what appeared to be fast and loud steps coming straight to her office. Whoever it was, Tsunade was certain that he or she was pissed for reasons she really didn't want to deal right now. When the door opened, Tsunade had to suppress a sigh in dismay upon seeing the very man she hoped not to encounter today. Uzuki Gaeshi was often times cold just like his position demands of him…cold blooded and ruthless hunter-nin, the man earned himself the title of the unit commander for his outstanding work. It somehow surprised Tsunade that the man was downright furious, but she had a gut feeling that she knew the reason of this sudden intrusion.

"Ah Gaeshi-san, I wasn't expecting you this late. What can I do for you and please make it quick, I was about to leave." – Said Tsunade, trying to sound aloof to the manner in hand, however that only helped to infuriate the man even more and he made no attempt to hide his discomfort.

"Tsunade-sama, I demand to know why you crossed my authority regarding one of my hunter-nins. Shi is my best in the field" – Shouted Gaeshi as he crossed his arms. "I received a memo from your office saying that his status as hunter-nin is on hiatus until he advances in rank. That's totally ridiculous, Hokage-sama. Even if it wasn't, as commander of the hunter-nin unit, I must be present in all decisions regarding one of my shinobi"

"Gaeshi-san, the reason as to why I placed this condition on him is because I fear for his insanity in the future. I've been hearing reports from his toad summoner saying that his attitude has been changing ever since he initiated the job. The fact remains, yes, that a shinobi's rank is irrelevant to the hunter-nin position, but if he continues like this, there is high chance he will transform into a cold blooded murderer and seeing as he is a shinobi from the Leaf, he falls into my responsibility. And as such, I will not allow him to continue unless his emotions are in due check and in that case when he advances in rank, I'll analyze his state of mind in order to see if he's fitted to continue his job as a hunter-nin; because if not, then he'll be positioned as a regular Chuunin or Jounin and be placed on regular missions for the village, do I make myself clear Gaeshi-san" – Ordered Tsunade with authority, while seeing the man frowning his temples at this situation.

"Before he started as a hunter-nin, our unit estimated that approximately five percent of Konoha's force becomes a missing-nin rather from crimes committed against the village or for fleeing on us. After, though, this number was reduced severely, simply because of his reputation. But since you're the one making the decisions here, it will be up to you the responsibility of people fleeing because of his license being revoked. Have a pleasant evening Tsunade-sama." – Said Gaeshi, before turning and leaving the office, but he didn't stop muttering the whole way through. _This village has become too lenient on criminals and this event only proved that._

While seeing the man leaving, Tsunade couldn't help but wonder about her decision mostly in regards to offering second chances. Of course, her decision regarding Naruto was a valid one in her point of view, but what about Uchiha Sasuke? The man escaped from the village for selfish reasons and on top of that, joined Konoha's worst villain Orochimaru; even the fact that he betrayed Orochimaru and managed to kill him in the end, speaks little to his offenses against Konoha. Tsunade was still due to talk to Sakura about Sasuke escaping from Orochimaru's grasp but she was having doubts about labeling him as a missing-nin. She would have to think about it at home. No matter how much she cared for Sakura, her decisions would have to take into consideration the entire village.

* * *

**===the next day===**

Haruno Sakura got up this morning smiling for some reason. She got dressed and went to cover her shift at the hospital when the Hokage called her in her office. As she got inside and Tsunade started talking, Sakura began to smile as she heard that Sasuke managed to kill Orochimaru and would, no doubt, return to Konoha…or so she thought.

"No, Sakura…he won't be returning to the village. According to Jiraiya, he just gathered up a group of shinobis to join him in his quest against Itachi" – Said Tsunade, while looking at the sudden sad look Sakura displayed.

"I see…what are we going to do about it? Naruto is out with Jiraiya-sama, but we could arrange for a mission to go after him" – Requested Sakura, before seeing her shishou frown her temples even further and that got Sakura wonder what happened.

Tsunade, for her part, wondered about Sakura's never ending hope to getting him back, in spite knowing well what he did against Konoha. She was having doubts about revoking her decision to label Sasuke as a missing-nin, but after Sakura, one of her Jounin, so selfishly requested Konoha to pardon a criminal, her decision was final.

"No Sakura, I won't set anyone of my shinobi on a mission to get him back. However, I feel it's due time to review his position as one of our shinobi Sakura" – Said Tsunade, shocking Sakura to her very core. The girl was smart, she managed to learn everything Tsunade taught her about medical Ninjutsu and now she was a Jounin for the Leaf at such a young age. Reviewing Sasuke's status meant only one thing as she was well versed with Konoha's policy to know what Tsunade intended to do.

"Tsunade-sama, you can't do this to him. Every hunter-nin will be after him for a crime he didn't commit, please you agreed that the cursed seal was influencing him at the time" – Retorted Sakura, before seeing Tsunade close her eyes in contemplation.

"I said that the cursed seal _might_ have influenced his set of mind at the time, but the fact remains Sakura, that Sasuke betrayed our trust the minute he considered joining Konoha's worst villain in exchange for power. Not to mention how much shinobi we lost only to gather information on him and Orochimaru. Its due time to leave this manner to the hunter-nin division" – Said Tsunade, before seeing the downcast look on her student's face. "Sakura, answer me something…why are you so eager to protect him even though you said it yourself he never exchanged the same courtesy neither to you nor Naruto?" – Asked Tsunade, before seeing Sakura look at her with genuine surprise written in her face.

"He was a part of Team 7 and Naruto would agree with me that Konoha's his place. And while Sasuke never did return any sort of affection towards us, he was a member of the team, not to mention that I...have feelings for him" – Said Sakura with tears falling from her face, but Tsunade had the decency to look ashamed at her decision three years ago.

"Let me tell you something Sakura, this childhood crush of yours is a myth; the man only believes in his revenge against his brother and he wouldn't lift a finger to help you. Also, you're wrong in assuming that Naruto agrees with you, because from what Jiraiya told me, he finally saw reason" – Said Tsunade, earning a shocked look from Sakura upon hearing that Naruto is no longer worried about bringing Sasuke back "Naruto is travelling with Jiraiya to become even stronger, so that he has a binding chance against those after him. He told Jiraiya that Sasuke could've returned home after Orochimaru if that was his wish to do so. He already saw reason in this manner and as of right now, I'm labeling Sasuke Uchiha as an A ranked missing-nin. He still has a chance of surrendering and receiving a light penalty, but if he tries to fight back, he will be sentenced to death just like any missing-nin" – Concluded Tsunade, earning a nod in understanding from Sakura before she turned and left the premises, thus leaving Tsunade alone in her office.

Tsunade didn't actually lie about Naruto's feelings towards the Uchiha. He did say that he no longer thought of him as any different as a missing-nin that he hunted with such a passion.

The blond Hokage actually felt sorry about Sakura, though. She first wondered that Sasuke was nothing but a child crush and with time, it would fade. Instead, this feeling grew to dangerous proportions and Tsunade feared that Sakura could do something stupid because of the Uchiha. She surely hoped not, though, seeing as Sakura is a Jounin and a respected medic-nin on the field. It would prove to be disastrous if the Hokage's faith in her abilities were misguided and it turns out, her mind isn't evolved enough to take the responsibilities of a Jounin.

With Sakura, after she closed the door, images of Naruto flashed inside her mind as he said that he wouldn't stop trying to bring Sasuke back. She wondered about the blond now more than ever, since they haven't spoken with each other for almost two years now. No doubt something happened to him in this trip for him to suddenly change his feelings for Sasuke and abandon him just like that. Little did she know, though, what really happened to Naruto.

* * *

**===One week later===**

One week passed by and several occurrences happened. Sakura, after knowing about Sasuke being labeled as a missing-nin went into depression and stayed inside her room for at least four days, until Ino came and rescued her. Actually, Ino gave Sakura an ultimatum by orders of the Hokage that if Sakura wouldn't pull herself together, she would be punished severely, even bearing on demotion. Also, the Yamanaka lady managed to convince Sakura, in the end, by saying that Sasuke was too much bent on revenge to even consider coming back to Konoha.

Of course, it wasn't the words that convinced her, since Tsunade said the same thing, but rather the fact that one of Sasuke Uchiha's fan club Yamanaka Ino said so. Ever since the academy, Sakura and Ino would bicker with each other only to see who would be chosen by the mysterious Uchiha Sasuke and for Sakura to hear Ino speaking about forgetting about the rivalry kind of waken Sakura of her self induced trance.

Sakura still mourned Tsunade and Naruto's decision to let go of Sasuke, however, as a Jounin, she just couldn't afford to let such a burden take control over her actions and Tsunade concurred with every word. In the end, though, the Hokage convinced the Hunter-nin Commander to place an special order on his bingo book page to ensure that he receive the chance to come back willingly. That managed to ease Sakura's heart a little bit, but little did she know that the one who would probably be after Sasuke was none other than his old teammate Naruto.

Speaking of Naruto, after closing rent to his two apartments, he spent the whole week in Hana's house, while getting to know her family and also spending some time with both Kiba and Tsume. The Inuzuka heir kept his end of the bargain and kept his mouth shut about Naruto's return to the village, but because of his impulsive behavior, he wasn't doing a very good job and one of his teammate Shino was getting suspicious. Kurenai managed to help by easing the situation, but the Aburame heir was considered a genius and such information wouldn't take long to reach his ears.

After speaking to the blond about it, Naruto nodded with his head, knowing that Shino's bugs would alert him to Naruto's presence so it would be inevitable in the end. The hunter-nin just hoped that Shino 's logic would prevent him for speaking the truth to everyone.

Two days ago, the meeting occurred simply because Naruto choose to let Shino know. He told Kiba to call Shino in for a little chat to which the Aburame heir acquiesced and appeared at the Inuzuka Compound two days ago.

**Flashback on**

_Naruto was sitting next to a tree located within the Inuzuka compound in a deep state of meditation. His chakra flow was already normalized, so he was now getting accustomed to the flow, for when he needs to use it once more. He, then, opened his eyes when his senses caught movement in front of him and saw Kiba and what appeared to be a member of the Anbu forces. _

"_Hello Uzumaki Naruto, it's been a while"- Greeted Shino , before seeing Naruto with his mask on getting up before offering a handshake to the Aburame heir. _

"_It's nice seeing you Shino, I see you became a part of the Anbu forces, good for you" - Said Naruto, earning a nod from Shino, who was analyzing every single information about Naruto from both his bugs and what his eyes told him. The man was simply surprised to see the results. According to his bugs, Naruto's chakra capacity nearly doubled since last time and he could very well find traces of Fuuton and Katon chakra flowing through his chakra coils. _

"_Likewise; I've been wondering, though, about the reason behind your avoiding your friends. Have you no faith in us?" - Asked Shino, with normal apathy, but this was Shino they were talking about. Naruto, though, didn't sound ashamed or regret._

"_There are some aspects of my life that should remain confidential Shino. I know very well that the bug you placed on me told you every information about my body, so you know any information leakage would result in either Konoha or those I care for, being on the receiving end of my enemy's hands. It's not that I don't trust you guys, it's just that I didn't want to take any chances only for it to come bite us in the end. Logic prevails in this manner Shino; in order to keep information from your enemy, one must keep it away from your friends first" - Explained Naruto, earning a nod from Shino as he concurred with the blond's assessment of the situation._

"_Indeed, logic overrules any sort of emotional sentiment and having faith in others may result in the secret being leaked. I'm surprised, though, about your change in attitude, Naruto" - Said Shino, to which Naruto let out a snort. _

"_Let's just say that in my situation, I didn't have much of a choice otherwise. People would perish because of what I represent and I just wouldn't be able to handle the responsibility. It was better for me to do what I did, then wait for them to come here and destroy everything in their path. Sarutobi Asuma was the first and because of what I did, hopefully, he will be the last" - Reasoned Naruto, earning a nod from Shino. Kiba, however, was completely lost during one part of the conversation and left the two masked shinobi alone to talk. _

"_Your secret is safe with me Naruto, don't worry about it. However, in case you are in need of any help, don't hesitate to call me. You're one of us, even though your selfishness would've killed you, if not careful. Now, I must take my leave" - Concluded Shino, earning a nod and farewell from Naruto. _

**Flashback off**

Since the talk, Naruto spent his time training to adjust his chakra to normal levels. He would practice some Ninjutsu from both elements, some agility exercises with his weights, in order to maintain his body mass to acceptable levels. Earth manipulation was only studied, since for Naruto to adjust a new element to his Ninjutsu department, he would need to be well-versed on the theory before even trying to use doton techniques.

Today, Naruto went straight to the garden located on top of the Hokage Tower, where he was supposed to meet Jiraiya. They still had three weeks left to attend the Chuunin Exams in Iwa and Jiraiya first wanted to take the boy to Mount Myoboku in order to teach one last arts to incorporate in his arsenal. It so happened that Jiraiya realized that Naruto was reading about Doton manipulation and the pervert was giddy to teach him some techniques, while traveling.

Upon arrival, he alerted his presence to the pervert, before seeing Jiraiya to address the blond.

"I thought that you'd lose the mask by now, care to give me a reason?" - Asked Jiraiya, earning a snort from Naruto, since he thought the man was going senile by asking such a question.

"Yes, that's a good idea. Not only Konoha would see me but Akatsuki would as well, thus luring them here to attack us. There is a reason people hide their identities Jiraiya; I don't wear the mask for fashion reasons." - Spoke Naruto, earning a smile from the pervert.

"I wouldn't think of the word paranoia to describe you" - Said Jiraiya, before turning to face the village once more.

"I prefer the term cautious, if I may. Now, tell me what did you call me here for? We are scheduled to leave for the Chuunin Exams in two weeks" - Asked Naruto, earning a nod from Jiraiya.

"There is been a change of plans and we're leaving tomorrow towards a special place where I want to teach you something. So tell your girlfriend and her family that you'll be leaving tomorrow" - Ordered Jiraiya as he saw Naruto crossing his arms.

"How do you know I'd agree with you teaching me whatever it is? It's not like the Chuunin exams is so hard to pass if the one from Konoha was any indication" - Asked Naruto, before seeing Jiraiya smile at the blond. Three years ago, Naruto would drool at the prospect of being trained, but now he was showing reluctance.

"It's a surprise kid; all I can say that only two people ever received this type of training and I can guarantee to you that it will be worth it. Plus, this ability I intend to pass on won't be needed for the Chuunin exams, since your skills are more than enough. Now, it will be served to counter Akatsuki's most powerful members in the future. Itachi and Kisame are indeed powerful, but according to my sources, they respond to the group leader, so it's safe to say that skills alone won't get you far. You'll need these skills to have hope against the strongest members" - Explained Jiraiya, as he turned to face the hunter-nin.

"Sounds like you already know what's going to happen in the future. Nevertheless, maybe these skills you speak about can be beneficial in the long run. When are we leaving?" - Asked Naruto, earning a smile from Jiraiya.

"Tomorrow at noon, meet me here" - Scheduled Jiraiya, earning a nod from Naruto before he vanished within a small tornado.

* * *

**===the next day with Sasuke===**

After picking up some supplies and medication, Sasuke and his crew travelled north to a rather crowded village where they stayed for the duration of the week while the team investigated Itachi's whereabouts; however not much information was found by either Karin or Suigetsu. They heard only basic information that was pretty much common knowledge by now. However, Juugo had the ability to communicate with the animals, hence how he discovered a couple hideouts used by the red cloud organization called Akatsuki. He couldn't pinpoint, though, their exact location since like Orochimaru, the group never settled for remaining in one place, so while Juugo had a breakthrough regarding the hideouts, he didn't supply much for Sasuke to work with.

"Sasuke, it would be prudent, perhaps, to change our focus in this manner" – Said Juugo, earning Sasuke's attention before he proceeded. "From what the animals told me, Akatsuki's targets are special type of shinobis with demons trapped inside them. I believe the appropriate term to call them is Jinchuuriki, a prison for the tailed beasts used by each hidden village to seize an advantage in the midst of the great shinobi wars. In order for us to know where Itachi would be next, we should focus, perhaps, on the one your brother is after" – Explained Juugo before seeing Sasuke fall into a thinking pose by resting his chin on his left hand. Suddenly, images of an annoying teammate and the Kyuubi inside him flashed through his mind. Indeed, Itachi would be after Naruto in order to capture the Kyuubi inside of him, so if they went after Naruto, there would be high chance that Itachi would be present as well. The only problem with this plan would be the blond's pathetic attempts to bring Sasuke back to Konoha upon seeing him and that was something the Uchiha didn't want to handle at the moment.

"Juugo, there is a Jinchuuriki from Konoha that I believe is the one that my brother is after; are you able to gather information regarding his next whereabouts. His name is Uzumaki Naruto" – Asked Sasuke, earning a nod from Juugo.

"The animals can sense where these special type of individuals are and they told me about someone residing in Fire Country, it must be him. As far as I know, Konoha only has one Jinchuuriki. I'll see with the animals about his current location and current route, for us to see where he's heading" – Said Juugo, before a couple of birds landed on the big guy's shoulder before he initiated the communication. In minutes, the birds flew away with the investigation in hand while Team Hebi remained inside the room waiting for the information to come back.

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

As soon as Naruto said his goodbye to Hana and her family, he meets the pervert on top of the Hokage's tower. They, afterwards, left the gates towards Iwa where the Chuunin exams would take place. Also, since Naruto left the village, the hunter-nin mask wouldn't serve the purpose which was hiding his reputation as the Hunter-Fox for now. A couple miles later, though, Jiraiya stopped Naruto for a while.

"What's the matter Ero-sannin?" – Asked Naruto, earning a snort from the pervert at the recollection of the name

"Remember when I said we'd stop at one place first, well there's special route in order to take us there" – Said Jiraiya as he bite his thumb and made some hand seals, before slamming his hand for the summoning technique. After the smoke dissipated, Naruto expected that Gamabunta would appear or his pal Gamakichi, but instead a little green toad with a dark cape surrounding his body.

"**Hello Uzumaki Naruto, I see it's time for you as well"** – Greeted the green toad, but Naruto was caught staring at the little toad as in wondering just who the hell this little toad was, until Jiraiya stepped in.

"Fugasaku-sama, I called you here so that you can take us to Mount Myoboku" – Stated Jiraiya, earning a nod from the toad named Fugasaku, before he initiated a long series of hand seals, before slamming his two hands on the ground for .

Instantly, all three of them disappeared from view, but none of them realized a couple of birds watching from a distance, before they flew away in order to meet with their contact.

* * *

**===With Sasuke===**

In no time, the birds arrived at the place where Team Hebi was and landed on Juugo's shoulder, before telling him about a person that matched the description of a Jinchuuriki.

"Sasuke, according to them, this Naruto person had just left Konoha heading towards the northeast direction. Possible destinations are Iwagakure, Kusagakure and Takigakure" – Reported Juugo, to which Sasuke nodded and turned to think about it for a moment.

"Hey, I believe that the next Chuunin Exams will be held in Iwa, thus he could be going there to participate" – Said Suigetsu with his hands on this chin in deep thought.

"Baka, this Naruto was Sasuke-kun's teammate, there is no way in hell he is still a genin. Maybe, he's accompanying a team as their Jounin-sensei" – Shouted Karin, earning a snort in reply from Suigetsu, before he kept quiet.

"Humph, I bet the dobe is the only one from my age that's still a genin. We'll go to Iwa in two days, pack your things and don't forget to cover your tracks" – Ordered Sasuke, clearly underestimating Naruto. Little does he know, though, that it will be his biggest mistake.

* * *

_AN: Ok that's it for now…Sasuke is going to meet Naruto in Iwa, but will Juugo's theory prove to be right and Itachi appears there as well? Check out the next chapter._

_Oh, in case any of you wonders about Sasuke's fight against Deidara in Canon, I decided that it won't happen…at least not right now._

_Up next:_

_**Chapter 15 – Senjutsu Training**_


	15. Old Acquaintance

**Chapter 15 – Old acquaintance**

**Beta: Dreetje**

* * *

A little over two weeks passed ever since Naruto began his training under the toad's tutelage and the blond was now seating in a meditating position on the top a platter while balancing himself on top of the mountain. Surely, it was a rather gruesome test for him to learn how to use natural energy instead of relying on one's inner chakra. He certainly did remember every path very clear in his mind.

**Flashback on**

_As soon as Naruto and Jiraiya __arrived at Mount Myoboku, the blond took his time to study this strange and somewhat peace environment. The sun managed, with its majestic light, to illuminate the entire set of mountains and forests that surrounded the toad's village. His training would have to be increased, since he didn't have enough time for a full-time training, so a crash course would have to do._

_The blond heard the explanation on how to use the energy that nature provides and he actually felt it to be quite easy, at least in theory. The problem with him, though, was that unlike Jiraiya whom could merge with the toad in order to complete the transformation, the fox's simple presence didn't allow the elder toad to sync with the boy, leaving him to learn how to gather nature chakra all on his own. Impossible wasn't a word that could be described for Naruto's attempt, rather the fact that no one ever succeeded and the fact that those who tried it in the past now were a part of the many frog statues that adjourned near the oil waterfall in front of them. The method was simple, enough, but the consequences were deadly. The blond figured that with the kage bunshin level of training, he could learn how to gather natural chakra faster._

_Therefore, he summoned three kage bunshins and had each rub the oil on their respective bodies. However, quite suddenly, the four Narutos began to transform into a toad more appearance, before the elder toad smashed them all with a black staff, giving Naruto both the headache from the hit and from dispelling his kage bunshins. He would curse the damn toad not to do this anymore._

"_I'm very much obliged to do this Naruto; otherwise you'll end up as one of them" _

_Transforming into a toad statue, wasn't on his plns, so he obliged without question. He, then, h__eard the little toad named Fugasaku explain about the theory behind using nature chakra. _

"_You need to unite body and mind so you could see the nature chakra that surrounds us. Now, let's try again, because from what Jiraiya-chan told m__e, your time is rather short" _

_After hearing some lecture from the absurdly little toad and nodding in understanding, Naruto once again summoned three kage bunshins and repeated the process only for the toad like appearance to return and the usual bonk on the head was received._

**Flashback off**

Naruto needed close to a week only to get adjusted to the new source of chakra. Fugasaku and Jiraiya in front of him watched the blond in meditation with a smile on their faces. No human had ever managed to draw on nature chakra without the help of a toad to serve as a medium and the perverted sannin was very proud of the blond for overcoming such an obstacle. Naruto didn't have time to learn the toad's taijutsu style, but that could be taught to him easily once he has more time available.

For now, only training in using nature chakra will have to do and the fact that with it, Naruto's jutsus would already improve, Jiraiya felt confident that he would give any Akatsuki member a run for the money. He noticed with amusement as a blue bird landed on Naruto's shoulder, before seeing the blond opening his eyes to look at said bard for a while. The problem was that the bird disrupted Naruto's concentration, thus making him lose his balance. The fall was quite large and Jiraiya looked at the toad worrying over his student, before he remembered that one of the attributes of nature chakra was that it managed to absorb most of the impact, leaving only a minor bump to the user's body. A hundred meters down, Naruto was holding his head in order to stop the headache, while at the same time, cursing the stupid bird who had to ruin his concentration.

"**While you curse the little bird, I'm holding my stomach from laughter. It's been a while since I saw you showing a scared face"**

The blond heard the damn fox laughing inside his head which caused him to snort, while wondering if the fox was now presenting a humorous comment, instead of usual sarcastic remarks, which by the way, infuriated him.

"_If I didn't know any better, I'd say you'd be glad to see me gone, furball. I'm relieved, though, this nature chakra thing eased the fall otherwise I'd be done for_" - Thought Naruto, followed by a snicker from the fox inside his head.

"**Get rid of you? No, you're too amusing for me to want that; that face of yours will be forever printed in my memories. Regardless, the pervert sure gave us an interesting skill to work with in the future. I admit that this nature chakra intrigues me to no end, imagine the possibilities if we were to merge our chakras with this new source"**

True enough, Naruto was in fact following the fox's enthusiasm and wondering if such a feat was possible.

"_Furball, I was thinking of new jutsus we can use with the natural energy. I remember you saying to me about an extremely potent katon technique that would drain even my reserves and I was wondering about how we could learn advanced fuuton jutsus, like the control of gravity" _- Thought Naruto, before hearing the fox deep in thought.

"**Most amusing you are, indeed Naruto. You seem adequate enough at the art of nature chakra gathering, so you could use the last week in order to practice these two jutsus we worked with. Just tell the pervert that you need some alone time to train and meet with him back here a week from now"**

The blond concurred with the fox's assessment and went immediately to talk to Jiraiya so that he could have the next week alone to train a couple of jutsus using nature chakra.

The sannin thought for a while; he wanted for Naruto to learn some of the toad jutsus, but he knew if the blond used them in the midst of his hunting, people would know about his identity. He concurred in the end with the blond's request, saying that he was to meet here in a week. Naruto nodded and grabbed his clothes before putting them on, before leaving the vicinity. As he was jumping through the trees, he spotted Gamakichi going right by his side, jumping. The peculiar situation that Naruto found was that the normally his height toad, now easily was fifteen feet minimum and while Naruto was using the trees to jump, the toad was simply not caring all about them.

"How the hell did you get so big Kichi? I know I haven't summoned in a while, but damn!"

The now rather big-sized toad just laughed at his summoner's expense, but indeed it was the first time that Naruto saw the real him, instead of how he appeared in the other dimension.

"**Father and Fugasaku-sama asked me to follow you and see how you'd use the nature chakra and which jutsus you'd come up with. We have a record, you know, of sage arts ninjutsu. As such, it will be responsibility to report them your techniques. As to why I'm so big, actually since you started your hunter-nin mission, I suffered a growth spurt of sorts; I just appear little in your world at my choosing. When father retires, I'll be replacing him as the boss toad, so he's training me."**

After being explained, Naruto offered a nod in understanding, before he stopped in the middle of clearing that happened to be close to a rather dense swamp.

Suddenly, a horde of giant bugs appeared ready to attack the invaders, only for Gamakichi to grab them all with his gigantic tongue, before swallowing every insect, clearing the sky. As the toad was rubbing his stomach in downright satisfaction, the blond had the decency to flinch at the scene. In two weeks, he avoided the grotesque cuisine, opting to find at least something that he could eat without immediately throwing up. Luckily, he found a large fauna located a few miles from the toad's house, saving his stomach. He smiled upon remembering that Jiraiya tricked everyone into enjoying the bugs, before he would join Naruto for a delicious pork barbeque.

* * *

**===With Sasuke===**

Taking his time to arrive at Iwagakure, Sasuke and Team Snake were now resting inside an inn close to Kusagakure. The news that Naruto somehow disappeared from thin air was disturbing to the raven Uchiha and Juugo couldn't figure out how he managed to escape from the animals. Nevertheless, they knew that the blond would be present for the Chunnin Exams, hence why the leader continued on his course of action.

Hopefully, Itachi would be going there as well and then Sasuke would finally be able to kill his brother for good. For a while, now, though, Itachi wasn't the only subject of his thoughts, rather being divided between him and the blond they were now tracing. Something didn't add up, he thought. Naruto could be a pest at time, but Sasuke was certain that the blond had enough power and skill, by this time, to be warranted the jounin position. He cursed the fact that lack of intel could be the end of him, but he would need to see how the dobe fights with his own eyes.

Another thing that bothered him was the sudden inclusion of his name in Konoha's bingo book as an A class missing-nin. He frowned in dismay at wondering why they took so long to do this. It's been a long time since he betrayed the village by joining Orochimaru and all this time he wondered why the village didn't place him as a missing-nin, then. The problem now was the hunter-nin squad Sasuke knew about and the thought of having to face them in battle at the same time as going after Itachi. Somehow, he wondered if either the dobe or Sakura managed to convince the Hokage not to enlist him as a missing-nin after his first act of betrayal. Regardless, though, now the group needed to double the attention on their surroundings.

Karin would now be the key for his victory against Itachi and the Hunter-nin that would come after him.

* * *

**===Two days later===**

Back with Naruto, the blond was holding the tiger seal while three pillars of white hot fire were spinning around him in a clockwise pattern. His eyes were closed in utter concentration as controlling the pillars took a high amount of chakra. However, now using nature chakra, he found that his reserves weren't even touched and he could use this technique without worrying about chakra exhaustion. Suddenly, he opened his now horizontally slitted eyes and focused more on nature chakra before the pillars of flame started spinning in front of Naruto as they were suspended on air in an horizontal manner. What happened next could better be described as awesome by Gamakichi as the pillars of flame each shot a beam of fire, before each started spinning to form a drill and hitting the forest in front of them.

_**Senpou Katon Kaenheru (Sage Arts**__** – Fire Release: Blazing Hell Jutsu)**_

Needless to say the forest was decimated within seconds as the fire engulfed the entire arena into a crisp. Immediately deactivating the technique, the blond took a moment to study his new jutsu for any weakness to improve on. Certainly, the time was its biggest flaw, since he took longer than expected to complete the technique; no doubt he would be killed even before he adjusted the pillars horizontally. Another aspect of it is the tunnel like range of the attack, meaning that his enemy could easily dodge the attack, so Naruto could only use while the enemy is distracted enough to allow him not only time but certainty that the attack would hit the opponent.

"**Perhaps it would be wiser to use this jutsu while in a coordinated effort. You can't distract the enemy at the same time as attacking him. Let's move on to the next jutsu, the gravity one you're talking about"**

Naruto had the decency to sigh in dismay as one of the jutsus would be unusable in his line of work, since he didn't have what it took to use this katon jutsu quite yet. It was served as a long-range technique yes, but any enemy, at least the high level ones, would use the time granted to attack Naruto.

"_Perhaps because fire isn't my affinity, it takes more time to perform, but I'm certain that the wind one will be much easier and less time demanding. The technique, or at least the theory behind it, is quite simple. With nature chakra, I can use it to further increase the density of the air molecules and with wind chakra, compress the air. With it, the enemy's body will become ten times heavier, thus his muscles and organs will atrophy" - _Thought Naruto, as he watched the big fox thinking for a while.

"**I understand now why you could only do this with nature chakra, because only then, can you look at air molecules. Nonetheless, while you can visualize it, that doesn't mean you'll be able to bend it to your will. Are you certain that wind chakra enables such control?" **

If someone would ask the demon a couple years ago about how much credibility would be given to Naruto's ideas on chakra related techniques, the creature would surely respond with uncontrolled laughter, but after spending much time on conversations with the blond and actually seeing merit in his ideas, the fox just wasn't able to discredit his theories so much from fear of the blond actually demonstrating what he said. Nevertheless, it was a hobby of his to pester the blond as much as he could, so…

"_It should work. It's the same principle behind the way I perform the great breakthrough technique; I first let out an almost faint gust of wind from my lungs and with wind chakra, expand it to perform a strong gust of wind. It's just a matter of control over the element of nature, don't you agree?" - _Explained Naruto, but still the fox was skeptical.

"**Your theory is passable at best. There is a great gap in it, but we'll have to see how it goes as far as practice is involved" **

Naruto knew enough about the fox's taunts to know that he was being an ass for the single purpose of riling him up a bit. _One of these days, I'll enter that cage and shove a rasengan up his ass, I swear I will_

* * *

**===With Itachi and Kisame===**

Coming from the north, cutting through Otogakure, Itachi and Kisame were walking without a care in the world towards where they would finally capture the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki. The boy was as slippery as a snake, but now they would capture him, Jiraiya there or not. They received the information from the chunnins that were responsible for gate keeping in Konoha. According to their conversation, the Kyuubi kid and the sannin left towards Iwagakure for the incoming Chunnin Exams that would be held in a couple weeks.

The thought of what the blond was doing at a Chunnin Exams didn't pass through their heads, simply because it was meaningless. To the two, all it mattered was the Kyuubi leaving inside of the boy.

"Do you think it's wise to capture him inside the village, Itachi? Certainly, we'd have to fight some of Iwa's goons in the end, just to get to him and while I enjoy a good fight and Samehada enjoys some chakra, it's unlikely of you to plan like this so recklessly"

It wasn't that the shark was afraid or anything, but the mere thought of doing something so rash just for the objective, didn't seem like one of Itachi's usually brilliant schemes.

"That's the entire reason Kisame; by entering the village, Naruto and Jiraiya will believe they're safe from our grasp inside; however what they fail to realize is that getting inside unnoticed doesn't require much skills and our organization isn't worried about starting a war. Nevertheless, I feel it's high time to warn you Kisame, the boy is not to be underestimated. Last time, he managed to escape our grasp because of it, but now things will be different"

"Well, aren't you a feisty individual, Itachi. Samehada will enjoy all that chakra of his; don't worry about it"

All that Itachi did to respond was the usual 'hn' seemingly both Uchihas made to display their annoyance hidden by a pathetic attempt to dismiss the subject, but Kisame could only smile with those usual shark like teeth that all Kiri ninjas seems to possess.

_**(AN: Actually, that's more**__** a wonder of mine. Who we didn't meet, aside from the Mizukage in the manga that didn't have those different set of teeth, maybe it's a village characteristic)**_

"Regardless, we should keep our eyes put. Our contact in Konoha said next to nothing about what skills he now possesses. Not to mention we have Jiraiya to worry about as well"

* * *

**===Time skip – End of the week===**

By the end of the week, Naruto was on Gamakichi's back as they jumped towards the place where Naruto was supposed to meet with Jiraiya in order to continue their journey towards Iwagakure. A full grin was clear on his face as he proved the damn fox wrong with his new technique called _**Senpou Fuuton Juuyousei Seiryoku (Sage Arts - Wind Release: Gravity Force Jutsu)**_. Of course, some twists were necessary, because for Naruto's old theory to work, he would have to link each molecule with the other in the order to control the gravity throughout the whole field. So, he instead focused on the bigger picture, expanding his chakra throughout the entire region, not worrying about a specific point. Because of this, his attack range was wider and more unpredictable, being him the only one who could see where the gravity would be heavier.

In little to no time, Naruto and Gamakichi arrived at the place where Jiraiya and Fugasaku stood, waiting.

"I trust you made good use of the time given, Naruto"

Jiraiya often wondered if he should follow after Naruto to see what jutsu he was practicing, but in the end, he learned to keep his cool about it, since Naruto would either tell or show it to him eventually.

"Very, two jutsus almost mastered, needing only a few more testing. Fugasaku-sama, I appreciate your time in training me at the arts of Senjutsu"

No doubt, the little toad looked startled for a moment as the following bowing in respect took him by surprise. He was under the impression that the blond lacked some knowledge regarding his mannerisms, but then he was paying attention to a rather brief report Jiraiya made when he first meet the boy four years ago. Jiraiya for his part look offended by the sudden show of respect displayed by the blond towards Fugasaku in contrast to how Naruto often called him a perverted hermit for no reason what so ever. Well, at least according to him it wasn't, but everyone would think calling a pervert would be an understatement.

"**Oi Gamakichi, I want to hear about the kid's jutsus later, alright. As to you Naruto-kun, it was a pleasure teaching the likes of you. Because of you now, others will be able to better grasp the art of the sage arts without needing the toads for it. Have a safe journey and don't forget to call us when your life is at risk"** - Smiled Fugasaku, before he saw the two vanish within puffs of smoke.

* * *

**===the real world===**

After Naruto and Jiraiya were summoned back to their world, they looked around them to see a small green toad with goggles' on his head.

"Jiraiya-san, I've summoned you two at the exact position you were before going to Mount Myoboku. You're two days away from Iwagakure and four days away from the beginning of the Chunnin Exams. Is there anything more you wish of me?"

The voice was difficult to understand because this toad was actually smaller than Fugasaku, a feat that Naruto never thought it would be possible, but his eyes didn't fool him. Jiraiya, though, didn't pounder on that, opting instead to just appreciate and watch as the toad vanished back to his realm, before he turned to the blond.

"We'll have now to step our pace, I'm afraid. According to Iwa's rules, all attendants must be present one day prior to the exams for registration purposes. Therefore, we have three days to arrive and place your name. Now, let's move"

It wasn't long until they initiated their path which, by the way, would have to be treated with care so as not to alert any of Kusa's forces. Of course, they were going for the Chunnin Exams, but trusting anyone like that meant death in the shinobi business.

A few hours after, the sun was already down and the moon were now taking the responsibility of illuminating the rather large canyon the two now stood. They managed to cover quite a bit of ground going around Kusagakure territory, since it would be faster, albeit more dangerous. Naruto managed to count at least three guard outposts they swiped by without being spotted. Now the area they were located were filled with enough caves for them to hide in case Kusagakure tries to find them. While Jiraiya was preparing a fire, Naruto took his time to watch the beautiful scenery before him. His hunting missions never brought him up to the north and he was enjoying himself right now. The pervert watched with amusement while adding some oxygen for the flame to increase. The two found some banana trees nearby and took them for dinner, but a nice fire was for them to get warmth throughout the cold night ahead of them.

After dinner, Jiraiya decided to sleep a bit and pick Naruto for the first watch, which infuriated Naruto since he knew that Jiraiya was sleeping the entire time on the Toad's Mountain. He agreed, nonetheless as he now stood sitting on a rock near the cave entrance where they sent their respective tents. He was watching for a couple of hours until he felt four presences coming straight at him from up the mountain. Silently, he sent a kage bunshin to wake the perverted up while he would gather their identity. Suddenly, four images appeared in front of him just for them to disappear down the canyon. Naruto smiled since he saw a rather peculiar set of eyes watching him, but vanished soon afterward. Jiraiya soon appeared outside and asked why the blond felt the need to wake him before his shift ended.

"Sasuke and his goons appeared before they vanished, it appears that they're following us, for reasons I'm not aware as of yet"

Commented Naruto with a solemn look on his face as he felt like he was the pray in this situation.

"That eludes me as well, last time I heard he was after his brother. Maybe, he wanted, first, to gather the Mangenkyou Sharingan before fighting Itachi, after all, even though it was short, you said he considered you a friend, so killing you maybe his door to the next stage of the sharingan" - Contemplated Jiraiya while holding his chin with his right hand.

Naruto, though, looked amused at the possibility.

"He certainly had that chance twice now; I don't think that he intends to kill me. Being a hunter taught me something about how a prey feels and I'm feeling that I'm one in this situation. Sometimes, instead of going after your enemy directly, its better to go after who your enemy is after"

Jiraiya didn't have to pounder much for the blond's words immediately made him realize this troublesome situation they were about to go through.

"Do you think he's following you in hopes of meeting with his brother?" - Asked Jiraiya, before Naruto nodded in the affirmative, but even this situation caused him to smile in amusement.

"It would certainly prove to be a good distraction for us to escape while Sasuke and Itachi fight to the death. Kisame would engage with his team, so we will be free to go, then. Maybe, this goes in favor of Konoha and everyone ends up killing one another or let the winning side weak for me to deliver the killing blow"

This time, Jiraiya could see aspects of a hunter-nin's line of thinking in Naruto's words. A hunter would seek every advantage he could in order to reach the objective and that's exactly what Naruto was pondering on right now. His plan was brutal, but no less efficient; nevertheless, it didn't mean the sannin enjoyed such actions. Naruto sensed the sannin's displeasure and smiled, thus explaining the situation he was now in.

"One thing I learned Jiraiya, was that it never goes well for the pray, so considering the fact that right now I'm the pray, I'll have to turn the tables around, don't I?"

The blond had the decency to show a grin for his white haired teacher, since he was hearing Kyuubi's words praising him for his insight. The sannin, though, wasn't sharing Naruto's amusement in this whole ordeal.

"I just don't know if I prefer the blond idiot from before or the brutally killing machine you ended up becoming Naruto" - Lamented Jiraiya, before giving his back to the blond.

"I treat my enemies as they would treat me Jiraiya. If I recall, the Yondaime Hokage won the war by wiping out the entire Iwa forces at the last shinobi war. He did so protecting this village by killing more than a 1000 shinobi with the Hiraishin and the Rasengan. Now, you're accusing me that I'm not more than a killing machine. If they kill each other, than the village wouldn't need to worry about the Uchiha bloodline to come bite us in the end; all I do is for Konoha's well being by ridding ourselves from our enemies"

While right, it wasn't righteous in Jiraiya's opinion as he often thought the boy's actions as being. Gone was the blond naïve genin who believed that despite the Uchiha's treason, that his teammate wasn't to be treated as a criminal. That blond believed in second chances whereas this new one certainly don't and would do everything in his power to assure that those who wronged Konoha once didn't live to show that they could've changed if given the chance to do so. A hardened shinobi, Jiraiya concluded. _His mind is now set on the ninja way, I suppose. And it's true; Minato did kill more Iwa ninjas than anyone could count. Turning enemies against one another is a risky game Naruto and I hope beyond hope that you're doing what's best for the village_ – Thought Jiraiya as he smiled back at the blond.

"Forget I said anything kid, it just surprised me to hear you of all people saying these words. Get some sleep, I'll wake you up when the sun is up"

Jiraiya, then, was alone with his arms crossed, wondering about the future events. Now that Naruto mentioned, the possibility of Sasuke going after Naruto just to get to Itachi was a more plausible one than aiming for the Mangenkyou Sharingan. Now, Jiraiya wondered if even inside Iwagakure, they would be safe, considering that Itachi of all people could enter the village without even trying.

* * *

**===the next day===**

As the sun appeared on the horizon, Naruto was already up without Jiraiya needing to wake him up. They cleaned everything and proceeded their way towards Iwagakure, while followed by Sasuke's team distanced by a mile.

Sasuke wondered, yesterday, if Naruto was able to ascertain his identity, since because of the distance, the blond looked no more than a faint outline for Sasuke and his chakra was dormant enough to tell that the blond was sleeping while on guard duty. He felt compelled to underestimate the dobe, but for some odd reason, he reasoned that it wouldn't be wise to do so. The pace that they were traveling spoke highly of their speeding skills and Sasuke was certain that Naruto wasn't even trying hard to cope with a sannin's velocity.

Also, because of the sharingan and the bright light, Sasuke was able to realize with a bit of shock that the blond gained a lot of muscles and while not bigger than Juugo, he was certainly bigger than Sasuke. Another fact that worried Sasuke was the level of control the blond was displaying. Normally, Naruto's chakra was wild, almost like an untamed beast, but now Sasuke's sharingan could ascertain that the blond was using only the bare minimum to travel and his chakra flow was steady. While following, the blond was becoming a mystery to the Uchiha. He half wondered if the dobe was still insistent on bringing him back or not, since he stopped going after Sasuke. Not only that, but now it was Sasuke who was going towards him, imagine the irony of the situation. After approaching a clearing, the Snake Team suddenly skidded to a halt as they looked a couple of Iwa shinobi together with Naruto and Jiraiya, probably to escort them to the village.

Back to Naruto and Jiraiya, none of the story that they were told made any sense. According to the jounin leader of the escort mission, the reason for all of this was because Kusagakure was high on their borders in order to expand their territory and they wanted to certify that the Chunnin competitors wouldn't be harmed. Jiraiya turned to Naruto and asked him to be careful of their surroundings for any sort of trap, which Naruto nodded with his head. As one of the great hidden villages, Iwa shouldn't be concerned with a small village like Kusagakure wanting to take over.

Naruto noticed that the Iwa shinobis were looking at him with suspicious looks and sighed because of the unwanted attention he would soon have once arriving at the village. He was aware of the possibility that the village mistook his appearance with the late Yondaime Hokage. He sensed that Sasuke's team stopped for a while and continued to follow him maintaining further distance from him. Two hours after, Iwagakure was already appearing on the horizon and Naruto could very well see the numbers of mountains and rocks that surrounded the village. Every piece of construction was made out of rock and mud, since those were the only minerals found in abundance near the region.

Once they walked inside the village, Naruto and Jiraiya's senses expanded in order to avoid any sudden attacks and just as Naruto and Jiraiya predicted, not a single soul didn't send hateful glances at Naruto because of his appearance. Sasuke's team entered as well, albeit not by conventional methods. Naruto and Jiraiya stopped in front of a hotel, until the leader turned.

"Welcome to Iwagakure, Jiraiya-san; Naruto-san. You both are required to be present at the village arena north from here at dawn. Don't be late, otherwise you'll be disqualified"

After the leader and his group vanished, Jiraiya and Naruto went into the building in order to grab their keys and start looking in their rooms for traps or hidden wires.

* * *

**===At the Tsushikage's office===**

The Tsushikage was an older man than the Sandaime Hokage, wrinkled and the shortest man possibly alive. One considerable and quite impossible to take the eyes away from was the man's nose; filled with wrinkles and quite thick considering his entire face. Also, because of his height, he needed a pillow on his chair for him to rise to the desk. But make no mistake to his pitiful and old appearance, as he was the best dust ninjutsu user in all of Iwagakure. The old man was reviewing the documents of the Chunnin Exams until the same shinobi who escorted Naruto and Jiraiya arrived.

"Tsushikage-sama, the target is at the hotel as per requested, sir" – Said the jounin as he kneeled down in respect to a higher presence in the room.

The old man smiled and scratched the tip of his nose, before he pulled a file on the first draw of his cabinet. When the Hokage sent the file from the only genin from the Leaf Village who would take part in the exam, the Tsushikage made some digging and managed to raise this Uzumaki Naruto's picture. To his shock, the genin looked the splitting image of the one that was responsible for Iwa's fall on the last Great Shinobi War, one Yondaime Hokage. Ever since he first laid eyes on the picture, the old man started wondering about any possible genetic similarities between this Uzumaki Naruto and Namikaze Minato. Aside from the appearance, though, the old man couldn't figure anything else; said information wasn't even available in the black market as the Tsushikage chose to pick his information from.

Nevertheless, the man had some other plans in order to uncover the truth and that was by blood. Namikaze Minato was a god amongst shinobi, but one Iwa Shinobi managed to make a scratch on his arm with a kunai, before he was killed. The Kunai went back to Iwa and the blood was stored for further analysis. At the time, it didn't tell much about the ability that made Konoha win the war nor did aid Iwa in anyway; however they kept it stored for future use. The man's plan was to try and extract Naruto's blood to find a match. If the match was positive, then Iwa would finally get their revenge on what the Yondaime Hokage did.

The old man pressed a button on the intercom.

"Send Kurotsuchi here right away, I have an assignment for her"

Sooner after releasing the button, he turned his chair to grab the rest of the files, just when suddenly a woman with short black hair broke through the office window, before rolling down and presenting in front of the Tsushikage. The old man didn't even turn and not evident of sudden chakra usage to prove that he was ready for any attempt on his life, which meant that the woman in front of him loved doing this grand entrances quite a lot, especially since she was just promoted to jounin. Kurotsuchi or Black Earth as she was called between her peers, were the standard Iwa jounin outfit with fishnet trousers. Her eyes were cerulean blue and her hair fell enough to cover half of Iwa headband.

"You called old man; I was just enjoying a nice set of dango sticks and some nice sake. What do you have for me?"

After blatantly scrutinizing the most important man in the village, she smiled once she hit the kage's nerve. Well, anyone in Iwa knew that calling him words like old, senile, ancient, and archaic; it was enough to send the man on edge and this happens to be one of her hobbies. The Tsushikage for his part snorted at the woman in front of him tease him like always. The problem is that just the word was enough to set him on edge, even if he already expected the wit remark.

"Kurotsuchi, I have an A-ranked mission for you, take a look at this picture"

He, then, handed the picture to the woman and as she looked at the picture, her hormones started kicking immediately. _Man, this guy is hot_, she thought. While she was fantasying about the blond, the kage cleared his throat and explained the mission.

"This man's name is Uzumaki Naruto and as you already figured out or not, we believe he's the splitting image of the Yondaime Hokage, however before we set to kill him and possibly start a war with Konoha, we need to be sure that he's in fact the man's son or not. It will be up to you to get a sample of his blood. The problem here is that you cannot openly attack him as that would violate the rules that every hidden village signed up in order to host the Chunnin Exams. This way, you'll have to think of something in order to get us his sample. He'll be here for the duration of the exams, so you have until the end of the exams to finish the mission, any questions?" – Explained the Tsushikage, before he saw the woman nod.

"Just one, how long until you realize you're too old to even run this village any longer, hahahaha, see you old man"

Certainly pissing the old man as her favorite hobby and she carried on with such pride, before she jumped at the window once more, just as dust shurikens pierced the office where the woman would have been. _Damn, this girl, I'll get here some time_. The man always forgot to get her once he had the chance and she ended up stepping on him once more.

* * *

**===In Konoha===**

Back in Konoha, a lone man with a stick walked along his lone propriety surrounded by a large forest which was located in an abandoned training ground near the Forest of Death. To the untrained eye, it would seem that the old man was enjoying his retirement alone on his cabinet, but every step he took, every direction he went to, at least two of the his Root Operatives would follow from the shadows. He, then, entered inside the property where he would begin his timed tea ceremony, a ritual he allowed in his hardened experience shinobi life.

He positioned himself in the middle of the room near a fire place where he would heat the water together with the herbs while allowing the nice and smooth smell to fill the room. He could feel utter relaxation and peace from doing this every day, but that didn't mean that and old war like him became unaware of his surroundings. He smiled upon knowing the two hidden Anbus hidden inside the hidden passage just below the roof and could only pity Tsunade's failed attempt to spy on his activities. Suddenly, though, an unexpected occurrence happened and certainly it took him by surprise if his frowned face was any indication. There a few meters away from him, a plant started materializing from the ground until Zetsu appeared with all his glory.

"Danzou, it appears that your services will no longer be required…"

"**I'll enjoy feasting on your dead body…"**

The message, to the war hawk, was loud and clear about Akatsuki's intentions. He already sensed the Anbus leaving the vicinity and frowned in dismay at the damn Organization from ruining his plans. No matter, though, at least Akatsuki will be now with a member shorter, Danzou smiled as he signaled, before almost ten root Anbus appeared surrounding their leader.

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

Once getting inside their room, Naruto and Jiraiya immediately set out to find any sort of listening device or any sort of trap that could endanger their lives the minute one of them falls sleep. Once satisfied, they unpacked some of their stuff, thus freeing the package scrolls to carry weapons that would help Naruto during the exam starting tomorrow morning. After that, they were at the streets once more in order to find something to eat and found a nice barbeque place, before they entered and left half an hour later with their tanks full with steak and sake. After, the two went for a walk throughout the city as the sun was slowly setting on the horizon. The two of them knew that they were being followed, but none of them turned to see the followers. Nevertheless, both immediately thought about the next course of action since staying inside a village for a whole month, they had to at least know who were following them. Naruto guessed it was Sasuke like last time, but he couldn't be sure. Also the fact that two other sources were coming their way as well was troubling.

Jiraiya also could feel two people heading their way, albeit he knew that Sasuke would meet with them first. The worst part of it all was that Naruto never once lose that smile in amusement he was showing yesterday at the canyon. In fact, if possible, the blond was even more amused than before.

"You're playing a huge gamble here Naruto, even if Sasuke does engage against Itachi and send him into a stand-still; we still have to worry about Hoshigaki Kisame, who is also an S-ranked missing-nin. What do you propose we do if he is inclined to capture you while Sasuke is battling against Itachi?"

Jiraiya wasn't crazy enough to just let Naruto handle the situation on his own; he knew the blond was strong, hell the achievements Naruto was able to achieve at such an age was proof of that. Nevertheless, Kisame was a seasoned shinobi with skills that remains to be seen. The blond for his part, although lost was that smile on his face, he was calm.

"Not to say that I'm powerful enough to beat a guy like him, but I believe that in order to capture me alive these days will be a hard task to come by. For this, he would need Itachi to use his genjutsu on me so then Kisame could come and subdue me without effort. No, since Itachi will be hard pressed against Sasuke, Kisame will be hard-pressed on fighting against you and me at the same time. Plus, the fact that Sasuke brought a unit with him meant he was prepared to deal with Itachi's partner, thus leaving him alone with his brother for a showdown"

Although, he didn't want to agree, he was inclined to agree that the odds of Kisame breaking the usual Akatsuki formation was rather low almost non-existent. There was a reason that they would travel in pairs, after all. Nevertheless, it wasn't on the sannin's plans to be reckless and vouch their actions on runches, even if it was a highly reliable one at that. As they proceeded to walk, oak trees started to appear instead of the rock made buildings, alerting Naruto and Jiraiya that they must be baring the village outskirts by now and since they weren't obliged to remain indoors, it wouldn't call much attention.

As a clearing suddenly appeared, Naruto and Jiraiya stopped in the middle of it while Naruto was crossing his arms in bare annoyance at being chased by four amateurs. As a hunter-nin, Naruto started enjoying the feeling of a chase and he was becoming well-versed in chasing an unsuspecting enemy, even those bearing on A ranked in skills. Sasuke's group's movements, though, were sloppy and leave much to be desired if following the prey without alert was their intention. It was repulsive to the blond to even consider Sasuke a genius in the past with much noise he makes by each step he makes.

"Okay Sasuke, you don't need to stalk me around anymore, you know I don't swing that way"

As if the blond's goal was to piss the Uchiha off and make him appear as fast as possible, he was successful. Well, at least the four man unit appeared in front of Naruto and Jiraiya and Naruto could see that one of the four, actually the only woman of the group, was blushing while looking at Sasuke, but rather she was another one of those fan girls in Konoha or she was this way because of Naruto's comment, he didn't know.

Sasuke, as soon as he laid eyes on the blond with his sharingan activated, his mind began to process a variety of new and unsettling information. First of all, his chakra wasn't a mess like the way he remembered and with the Kyuubi's overflowing chakra traveling constantly throughout his chakra coils, he would imagine Naruto always having trouble to properly harness his chakra effectively. Second and most important, was the fact that it was evident that Naruto knew he was being followed and the dobe he knew before was more aware of his surroundings than an academy student.

Karin told him about never before feeling so much chakra from one person and now that he improved his control over the endless bundle of energy, Sasuke felt hard-pressed to consider Naruto a threat all over again.

"I can see that you changed dobe, the clothes I mean"

The blond had the decency to smile at the verbal taunting from his old teammate, while he scanned the Raven haired's team for any information he could get from it. His memory struck as he saw the peculiar sword strapped on the guy with blue hair and silly smile on his face. Skills with kenjutsu and possibly suiton ninjutsu if the man was from Kirigakure, Naruto concluded. Few people had the skill to even lift that sword much less use it in battle, so Kirigakure was the best call to ascertain this guy's abilities. The rest, though, were a mystery for the blond.

"I already told you that I don't swing that way Sasuke, so stop looking at my clothes. Moreover, I was wondering about why you felt inclined to follow me? Last time I checked, you specifically asked me to stay away from you, what gives?"

"Still trying to piss me off, I see. AS to the reason I'm following you is none of your concern. Taking the chance, I was wondering why you'd come to Iwa for the Chunnin Exams for, since by now, you would've become at least a Chunnin. I wonder if you're still the same dobe since we graduated?"

The tone of superiority was enough to make Naruto almost laugh uncontrollably inside his mind. True, he was a genin in rank, but the heads that he sent to Konoha were proof enough that ranks don't mean much in a hunter-nin's job. Regardless, Sasuke's ego was big enough to be diminished, so Naruto opted, instead, to keep as much information about his skills in secrecy for the moment. After all, information is power, right!

"You know, I was kicking back in Konoha, enjoying life a bit, you know. The ninja business was getting tiring, so I decided to just go with the flow. Who cares, anyway, about what rank a village gives you. What matters, truthfully, is whose kunai will end at the others throat. Don't you agree Sasuke-_kun"_

Jiraiya was listening to everything in utter silence while paying attention to their surroundings. Two very strong presences were about to arrive soon and he was being prepared. Nevertheless, he found it hard not to be amused at the psychological warfare that the blond was performing right now. He recognized a few of the members of Sasuke's team as the blue haired man's name was Suigetsu, a genin from Kirigakure that was supposed to take over Momochi Zabuza's position at the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist. The big one named Juugo was Orochimaru's lab rat for the cursed seal as he remembered seeing the boy get captured almost ten years ago. He paid attention as Sasuke snorted at the blond's commentary.

"I'm surprised that I actually believe with your assessment dobe. True, a genin could kill a jounin if given the opportunity to do so, while very unlikely. Moreover, i was wondering if you already know about my missing-nin status, my question was why only now was I enlisted. Was it you or Sakura who convinced the Hokage?"

If Naruto was surprised, he didn't show it. The truth was that he left Konoha, assuming that Tsunade wouldn't label the Uchiha as a missing-nin, but apparently he was wrong. However, this new information only proved to increase his grin at the sudden change of events. Now, instead of the ridding Konoha of an S-ranked missing-nin, he would have his first A ranked which he was sure Sasuke would be labeled at.

"Well, after you went rogue, we initially thought that the cursed seal was controlling your thoughts, so the Hokage was convinced not to enlist you that time. Within time, I, at least, realized that I was being naive because you actually did it to be with your love Orochimaru"

Naruto was satisfied the minute he heard snickering coming from Sasuke's team but he pressed further.

"Recently, she asked me what I thought about it and I explained to her that you had free will in what you did and cursed seal or not, it wouldn't take long for you to do what you did. I was sure Sakura would still stick up with you, even after what you did, but I guess realization was upon them now".

He knew he was getting to Sasuke's nerve and he knew as well that what he would say next would enrage the Uchiha to his core. No matter, though, because according to his senses, two presences were approaching this place and certainly Sasuke would forget the blond the minute he arrives.

"I'd say congratulations are in order Sasuke..."

"Oh and why is that?

Sasuke didn't like what the blond was trying to insinuate.

"You told me you wanted to kill your brother, because of what he did to your family. He committed a crime against the village and you also committed a crime against the village. He left Konoha willingly just as you also did and now just as he was declared a missing-nin, you were also declared as one"

By this time, Sasuke's blood was boiling by the blond's words. Comparing himself to his brother, how dare he.....

"The only difference between you and Itachi, Sasuke is that he's stronger than you'll ever be, cursed seal or not"

That did it!

Sasuke immediately charged at Naruto with his swords drawn. No matter his vows to kill no one but Itachi, the dobe will die right here for what he dared saying. Naruto was smiling the whole time, satisfied that he could, so easily, get to Sasuke's head like this. He knew Itachi and Kisame were already here and all it took was for Naruto to defend Sasuke's sword with his own, until a voice was heard and the younger Uchiha's heart exploded.

"Foolish little brother...."

* * *

_AN: Man; that was some end I just thought of. I want to dedicate this cliffhanger to KingKakashi, as he actually craves for it in his awesome story. _

_Now that the meeting is under way, who will __emerge victorious, Itachi or Sasuke. Also, Kisame will be aching for a fearsome battle and Samehada will be craving for Naruto's chakra. _

_See ya next time._


	16. Fated Battles

_**AN: **__Before I start the chapter, I'd like to comment Naruto's latest manga issues. I don't know what Kishimoto's deal is, but the man waits a whole week just to post a few conversations along with a few action moves and he's done. It's like the story is going nowhere with Sasuke facing everyone and, of course, winning. What's up with that, huh? I was actually cheering for Sasuke on this fight, but now I wish Danzou would knock the living shit out of the pampered Uchiha._

_Enough with the rambling, here is the chapter, everyone._

* * *

**Chapter 16 – Fated battles**

**Beta: Dreetje**

* * *

Uchiha Sasuke was considered a balanced individual, not much would faze the raven haired Uchiha as he dealt with his enemies with utmost finesse and tranquility. However, beneath that stoic exterior, everyone who knew him knew how to push the right buttons, which undeniably, ended up being his older brother Itachi and some attempt of comparison between the two just like what Naruto did. It caused Sasuke to lose whatever cool he was having at the present situation, before he charged Naruto with his sword.

But nothing…nothing infuriated Sasuke more than hearing those three words…

_Foolish little brother_

As Sasuke diverted his attention from Naruto, he looked at the source of everything he been through since the day his entire family was murdered; all those days when he'd sleep alone, only to wake up and realize that he was, indeed, alone with no one to comfort him. His grip on his sword was getting tighter by the minute and all images that he barred deep within his mind resurfaced. His brother, though, maintained the same look he had the night he killed the entire Uchiha Clan, looking like everything he did to Sasuke was a common occurrence.

Naruto, for his part, watched the staring between two brothers as Itachi and Kisame would approach the group of shinobis. The blond had, now, no misconception of an escape route since he was going to participate at the Chuunin Exams in Iwa and Kami forbid, he missed it and lost the chance to get back out there and hunt more missing-nins. Nevertheless, the concept of fighting against an S-ranked missing-nin like Kisame one day before the Exams could cause trouble for the blond afterward, so a cautious course must be taken in this manner. Naruto was diverted from his thoughts when Itachi thought about starting a conversation with his little brother.

"I can see you've grown Sasuke. You're not charging me while screaming with Hatake's technique"

Suddenly memories hit Sasuke of that day when Itachi and Kisame were to capture Naruto at an Inn near Konoha and Sasuke appearing to fight Itachi, charging with a Chidori. Itachi, however, caught Sasuke's wrist, before shoving his body to the nearby wall, before delivering solid punches to his stomach and face. The memory stopped with Itachi whispering something close to Sasuke's ear.

"I loathed you just like you said. It made me stronger because of it. I waited for this day and trained my body day after day so that one day…today I'd kill you and revenge the Uchiha Clan for good. Nevertheless, I'm just curious about something…" – Itachi's attention was peeked as Sasuke continued, not even aware, now, that the entire group was just standing there, listening to two brother's bickering. "The night you murdered the Uchiha Clan…there was no way you could've done that by yourself, no matter how strong you were at the time, you couldn't have done it on your own, who helped you?"

At the realization of some and question of others, Itachi curved a smile on his face, applauding his little brother for his cunningness. Naruto, though, appearing stoic at the situation, didn't think much of the event until right now. Sure, Itachi was a genius and an Anbu Captain at the time of the massacre, but wiping out one of Konoha's strongest clans in one night alone was ridiculous to say the least. Surely, someone helped him and his interest grew tenfold. Not to mention the fact that Jiraiya on his right was looking rather strange in this situation as in the information didn't shock him at all.

"**The pervert knows something we don't. I doubt someone as insightful as the Sandaime Hokage, at the time, would let such a thing happen under his nose and none of his Anbu patrols knew, before it was too late" **– Kyuubi said, inside Naruto's mind.

_And since Jiraiya was his student, most likely that he knows a thing or two about the Uchiha Massacre that wasn't made public. I wonder what happened that night. _

Naruto suddenly broke the link with his jailor as Itachi started answering Sasuke's question.

"Certainly, I did have help in getting rid of our clan and this man happens to be one of the founders of the Hidden Village in the Leaves…one Uchiha Madara" – It was only shock that meet everyone as Sasuke remembered when he was inside Naruto's mindscape, talking to Kyuubi about this certain Uchiha and that his chakra was more evil than Uchiha Madara himself. Naruto remembered that scene as well and he could hear the fox snarling inside his cage, which meant that something must have happened in the past between Kyuubi and Madara. Jiraiya, this time, looked shocked as well, since Madara was the man who fought the Shodaime Hokage for the right to lead Konoha as the First Hokage, it couldn't be possible that the man is still alive.

One person of the group, though, was getting bored at this situation and such person was Hoshigaki Kisame.

"Oi Itachi, not that I mind you two bonding with one another, but this entire situation is boring me out of my mind, I thought we came here after the Kyuubi brat"

Itachi broke his attention from his brother and looked at Kisame before closing his eyes.

"Sasuke's presence here complicates things a bit. We are still not aware of Naruto-kun's abilities yet and I don't believe my little brother will allow me to join you in the fight. Also, the Sannin Jiraiya is with the brat, so it's unlikely that you succeed in this fight alone. Although is up to you whether you take on those two or not. Sasuke's team won't fight you if you don't get in my fight against my little brother"

Itachi's analysis was indeed thorough, but Kisame's broad shark-teeth smile, pretty much responded the question, even though the Uchiha wanted for Kisame to flee and wait for him to launch a co-op attack and capture the Jinchuuriki. Meanwhile, Sasuke's group were having the same discussion, however unlike Kisame, his group was loyal to Sasuke, so they would do exactly what he ordered them to do. They were not to get involved in any of the fights unless one of them interrupts his fight against Itachi, meaning if either Kisame or Naruto/Jiraiya move to attack, they were to intercept.

Naruto and Jiraiya were looking at the Akatsuki team, both with a frown on their faces as a full scale battle was, right now, inevitable, even though Jiraiya wanted to take the easiest way out, which meant entering Iwa territory and mingle with the crowd.

"Naruto, I know that you're stronger now and probably acquired more experience against missing-nins, but you still due to face S-ranked missing-nins in full combat. Those you faced either underestimated your skills or didn't fight you directly. Kisame's Samehada is what we need to worry about. It eats chakra, so we have to maintain a distance" - Jiraiya explained.

"I'm aware of that sword of his, Jiraiya. However, while it's true we have to maintain some distance, the sword can't absorb two chakras at once, allowing teamwork to deliver the killing blow to Kisame"

A good idea, Jiraiya wondered. The perverted Sannin remembered Naruto's explanation about him being a demon, because he is Kyuubi and Kyuubi is him, which meant that when the blond fought against an opponent, the fox would participate as well.

"A great idea Naruto, let's not get carried away, though"

With that, the shinobi scattered throughout the field in order to separate the two fights. Itachi and Sasuke remained in the same position; Naruto, Jiraiya and Kisame moved to another clearing a few miles away from their fight. Of course, since Naruto didn't want to miss the opportunity of capturing either one of the Uchihas, he left a Kage Bunshin next to Sasuke's group, which was concealed behind some foliage.

* * *

**===Sasuke x Itachi===**

After the whole discussion, the Uchiha brothers stood in front of the other, as they analyzed the other with their Sharingan. Out of nowhere, Sasuke charged against Itachi with his Kusanagi in speeds unseen before, but Itachi's Sharingan was better evolved, hence why he could see Sasuke's movements before he even made them as he parried the sword with a simple Kunai. However, before he could even flip his body to deliver a solid kick to Sasuke's sternum, the younger one already back-flipped, before smashing his hands on the ground, sending a Chidori Current towards his brother.

Sasuke wasn't aware but by the time he flipped, he locked eyes for one second with Itachi, before being on the receiving end of a Genjutsu. The Chidori Nagashi hit Itachi dead on, but before Sasuke moved for the killing blow, Itachi's body dissolved into crows which, then, moved to charge at Sasuke. Suddenly, the crows transformed into shurikens, before Sasuke dissolved the Genjutsu, just moments away from the shurikens landing on his body.

Afterwards, they remained to stare at each other as Sasuke received the information about Itachi's intention of flooding the field with numerous projectiles. He, then, unrolled the straps that covered his wrists, before two seal arrays appearing. It was one second after he positioned two fingers on the seal, that Itachi initiated the attack, but with each shuriken Itachi would throw, Sasuke also had one to parry, transforming, instead of a fight, a showdown with sparks as metal collided against metal.

As they stopped, the shurikens appeared on the ground scattered, as the Uchiha stared at one another once again. However, Sasuke flinched upon seeing Itachi's Mangenkyou Sharingan develops, before Itachi was in front of him, out of a sudden, before landing a strong kick on Sasuke's stomach, sending him flying towards a thick tree, before hitting full force. Even though blood came off his mouth, Sasuke tried doing some hand seals for the grand fireball technique, but Itachi appeared by his side instantly, before holding one of Sasuke's hands up his head and deliver a solid punch to Sasuke's abdomen, taking the air out of him for a moment.

As Sasuke was trying to overcome the pain, another Itachi appeared in front of him as the first one hold him in place.

"Let me tell you something Sasuke about the Mangenkyou Sharingan..." - Itachi said, alerting Sasuke. "Although its power is unmatched, it comes with a price of eternal blindness. The one so far that overcame this obstacle was Madara himself. He confided to me how he was able to overcome...do you want to know Otouto"

Sasuke snarled at his brother, but he couldn't force himself out of Itachi's hold, at least not without the cursed seal he was holding for after.

"He had a brother Uchiha Izuna who, like him, managed to develop the Mangenkyou Sharingan. However, whereas his brother didn't need to worry about it, Madara suffered a terrible illness and would in little time, lose his sight forever. In an act of desperation, though, Madara took off his brother's eyes and implanted on himself, allowing him the Eternal Mangenkyou Sharingan"

Sasuke flinched at the idea and didn't need to be explained twice about Itachi's intentions.

"Now Sasuke, just like Madara's brother, your Sharingan will serve to prevent me from being blind" - his voice was increasing as it appeared that the man was losing his mind to greed. "Give me your eyes, Sasuke!!!!"

With that, Itachi positioned his fingers around Sasuke's eyes, before squeezing with force and plunging out the right one.

Sasuke's screams echoed throughout the clearing as he fought desperately from Itachi's hold unsuccessful. He cursed as Itachi placed the Sharingan inside a glass compartment filled with some preservation liquid.

"Now, I'll have the other one..."

As Itachi was about to take the other eye, the cursed seal mark started to appear around Sasuke's body, until the first transformation finished, increasing Sasuke's strength, allowing him to be freed from Itachi's hold. The new source of chakra, though, had a new effect on Sasuke as he suddenly dropped on the ground, coughing blood.

The strangest thing, though, was that Itachi was on the ground as well, panting from over-exertion.

_Impossible, he managed to break my Tsukyomi. _- Itachi thought as suddenly, he started coughing uncontrollably, spilling blood on the ground. The effects of the Mangenkyou Sharingan were getting on him and he didn't have much time.

He looked as Sasuke began doing some hand seals, before finishing with the tiger seal. While he was coughing non-stop, it didn't mean that Sasuke would wait for him to recover. So, with speed unheard of, Itachi matched Sasuke's technique hand seal for hand seal, until both ended with the tiger seal at the same time.

_**Katon Goukakyuu no Jutsu **__(Fire Release: Grand Fireball Jutsu)_

It was a clash of titans as the temperature near the region raised tenfold. Each Uchiha was wasting their chakra in maintaining the technique only to see who has the strongest, seeing as both attacks pretty much settled in the middle of the field, being only kept because of Sasuke and Itachi using their chakras. However, after a while, Sasuke's fireball started to win as it kept pushing Itachi's inch by inch. At this moment, Itachi knew his technique was weaker than his little brother, but that mattered little in comparison to one fire technique he had stored inside his right Mangenkyou Sharingan eye.

_**Ametarasu (**__Goddess of the Sun Jutsu__**)**_

* * *

**===Naruto/Jiraiya x Kisame===**

A good five miles separated the fights as Kisame was watching his enemies with that irritating shark grin on his face. Those who didn't know him would think that the man was mocking his enemies, however that wasn't the case. As a swordsman, Kisame would constantly put his skills to the test against powerful shinobi as it was a thrill for him, his heroin. Plus, he could feel Samehada's giddiness to suck the Jinchuuriki chakra whole; which meant that he wasn't the only one interested in this fight against a Sannin and a Jinchuuriki. The blue man looked around and saw that the field wasn't much to his liking, scratch that, it was disadvantageous to a Suiton user to not have a direct source of water to use his jutsus. Suddenly, making some hand seals, Kisame started generating torrents from inside his body until it was impossible to hold it inside as he exhaled the huge torrent of water.

_**Suiton Bakushi Shouha **__(Water Release: Bursting Water Collision Waves Jutsu)_

As the river was being formed, Naruto and Jiraiya frowned their eyebrows in response to Kisame's strategy. Nevertheless, an advantage like this, although highly seized by Kisame, wasn't enough to grant him victory against a Sannin and an A ranked Hunter-nin. Jiraiya turned to Naruto and went over the information he had on Kisame so far, which could aid them on this battle.

"Naruto, as you know his skills bend forward Suiton techniques and Kenjutsu. However, we'll have to worry about that sword of his and try keeping it from absorbing our chakras as we figure a way of defeating Kisame. I know you have two elements to use and are very proficient in Kenjutsu as well, but his sword matches no one so far, so we will strike him with nothing more than ninjutsu, hear me?"

The blond never took his eyes away from Kisame as he nodded to his teacher. Surely, using Katon techniques in this place is out of the question, since not only it wouldn't do much damage, but also his opponent had the exact opposite, thus elemental advantage. Straight to Fuuton techniques, then!

"Suiton is weak against Doton, Jiraiya. Can't you transform this river into a swamp or something? It would certainly get rid of his advantage" – Naruto asked, earning a snort from Jiraiya as he was considering his options.

"AS of right now, using the Yumi Numa technique is risky and chakra expensive. I prefer to use it once we're sure of what we're dealing here"

The conversation was cut short as both saw Kisame sliding on top of the water like he was skating, before attacking them both with his Samehada. Jiraiya and Naruto scattered each to one side while remaining a good distance away from the damn sword as Naruto started a considerable sequence of hand seals, before finishing with the dragon hand seal.

_**Fuuton Kaze no Yaiba **__(Wind Release: Wind Sword Jutsu)_

Kisame could see the distinguishing sound of the technique coming full force at him, but he just placed his sword in the way, before it hit full force. The problem, however, was that Samehada had its first taste of Naruto's chakra and beginning to increase its giddiness for more of the stuff. Deciding to test Kisame's agility, Naruto took his sword and charged against Kisame with speeds that surprised the Akatsuki member as he positioned his sword to parry Naruto's blow and suck a great chunk of chakra out of him as well, but just as Naruto approached, Kisame felt another surge of chakra being used, before he turned his head slightly to see Jiraiya finishing a sequence of hand seals.

_**Doton Tajuu Gansetsukon **__(Earth Release: Multiple Rock Spears Jutsu)_

Instantly and from below the water, dozens of rock spears appeared in front of Jiraiya, before he focused on the snake hand seal, before shooting the spears straight at the focused Kisame, who for his part, made a single hand seal for the Mizu Bunshin technique, as the doppelganger was in charge of breaking the spears while the real one dealt with the charging Naruto. Nevertheless, as soon as his attention went back to Naruto, he was already in front of Kisame, obliging the Shark to dodge the vicious slice, before attempting an attack with Samehada close to the blond's head, being little successful, though as Naruto managed to slice the Mizu Bunshin, before landing a powerful kick to Kisame's ribs.

The fish was surprised at the strength behind the kick as he was sent flying a couple meters away, leaving him wide open for Jiraiya as he summoned some oil inside his stomach, before covering Kisame completely. The swordsman was looking at the man in front of him with a big interrogation mark on his forehead as he wanted to know what the hell did Jiraiya just shot at him. However, his answer was soon given when he sensed chakra once more, this time from Naruto as he finished the hand seals with the tiger hand seal.

_**Katon Karyuu Endan **__(Fire Release: Fire Dragon Missile Jutsu)_

Jiraiya was for his part surprised at the choice for a fire attack by Naruto. He smiled, though, seeing as the blond understood his plan, but Jiraiya was thinking more in terms of a less-chakra demanding technique. Nevertheless, the hot shot of white fire hit Kisame dead on and while, normally it would be less-effective against a Suiton user, Jiraiya took care of that by covering Kisame's body with oil, increasing the already strong technique's damage.

Kisame took the attack and while his sword absorbed a few of the power, it did a great damage to his body as his limbs were completely burned. He cursed these two from keeping the distance, before he dived below the river. Some re-assessment on things was a due and the Akatsuki member needed a way to neutralize at least one of the two. It was infuriating how Konoha managed to train its ninjas to perform such coordinated attacks such as these two. By now, Samehada already managed to heal most of his wounds and the water around him helped in that regard, however Kisame knew that he needed another advantage beside the water field and that would be taking at least one of the picture so that he could concentrate on Jiraiya, before capturing the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki.

Concentrating on the element of surprise, he looked up where Naruto standing, before he swam nearby doing a large sequence of hand seals for a strong attack that would render Naruto useless for the fight. And just as the man thought, he appeared like a shark out of water to catch his pray, alerting Naruto instantly, however the final seal was made and the technique was already in course.

_**Suiton Daibafuku no Jutsu**__ (Water Release: Water Vortex Jutsu)_

It took less than two seconds as the water around Kisame exploded, forming a whirlwind and attacking the unprepared Hunter-nin as the blond was hit full-force by the technique. Jiraiya tried screaming for his student, but Kisame didn't even let him as he charged with his Samehada continuously. Even though Jiraiya managed to dodge all of the sword's attacks, he knew his chakra was being slowly absorbed by the Samehada, meaning he had to do something right now or else…He supposed he should check for Naruto, but while such an attack was fierce, it wouldn't hurt him much and in no time, the blond would join the battle once more.

Using straight Taijutsu, Jiraiya ducked under one attack from Samehada and landed a powerful kick to Kisame's face, which sent him skidding on top of the water, leaving the man opened for a straight attack as Jiraiya focused the Rasengan on the palm of his hand. Kisame didn't have time to place his sword in the swirling ball's trajectory and he was hit full force by the damn technique, which seemed to be ripping his skin part, before he was sent flying. Eventually, the sword managed to absorb the power of the Rasengan but the damage was already done. However, once more and much to Jiraiya's suspicion, the sword passed the gathered chakra and healed Kisame's wounds.

_Huh, it appears that the sword not only absorbs chakra, but also heals all Kisame's wounds. So, no matter how much we wound him, that sword will lend its chakra. We have to deliver stronger attacks one after another...it looks like the sword take a couple of seconds to heal Kisame...now I have to find Naruto.._

Jiraiya's musings were cut short as he saw someone approaching fast at Kisame, before he saw the fox cloak tail and visibly paled. Naruto was using the Kyuubi's power, but while he used only one tail; it appeared that he was now stronger than before. The blond for his part, ducked just as Samehada was to shred his torso, before landing a strong kick at the Shark's jaw, sending him flying on the air. Naruto didn't stop, though, as he jumped high before he reached Kisame, before delivering another kick this time to his abdomen.

The Akatsuki member always considered himself resilient to physical attacks, but getting hit by the bijuus power was something he never experienced before and his body was aching all over the place as his body was falling towards the river in incredible speed. Jiraiya, for his turn, took the opportunity Naruto gave him and did a sequence of hand seals.

_**Doton Doryuudan no Jutsu (**__Earth Release: Mud Dragon Projectile Jutsu)_

In front of him, the mud dragon head appeared, before opening his mouth and shooting mud projectiles at the still falling Kisame. The shark noticed it instantly and focused some chakra for a water barrier technique, which managed to prevent some of the projectiles from hitting him, but not all of them, as one managed to hit the man's chest.

Naruto landed on the water and saw Kisame losing his balance, leaving him once more open for an attack. He charged at Kisame in hopes of delivering a strong punch to his jaw, but the opponent was hoping for the Jinchuuriki to be near his sword, before he placed Samehada to take the punch for him. And just like he hoped and what Jiraiya feared, the chakra cloak surrounding Naruto was immediately absorbed.

Naruto, cursing his stupidity, did some back flips before landing near Jiraiya, but he swore he heard the sword giggling with excitement.

"It's been a while since I last showed Samehada's appearance behind the bandages and it appears that she's excited with your chakra, Uzumaki Naruto"

After Kisame unwrapped the bandages surrounding his sword, both Jiraiya and Naruto were shocked to see the sword's real appearance. The sword, even if Naruto found it difficult to call it as such, consisted of spikes and a big mouth emitting a sound peculiar to Uchiha Sasuke's fan girls.

Kisame, then, charged the two shinobi with the extended Samehada as the two kept evading each blow. However, this time the sword's chakra absorbing skills increased as the sword was getting bigger each second. Naruto knew he couldn't use the fox's chakra anymore from fear of that sword absorbing it and giving to Kisame, so he kept dodging the sword while attacking Kisame with projectiles and exploding tags, but all of it were being deflected by the sword.

It was only when Jiraiya took upon himself to lure the Akatsuki member that Naruto had his opportunity. Focusing wind chakra on his sword, Naruto dashed towards Kisame with the intention of slicing the damn sushi into equal parts. And because of the speed and the fact that Kisame was preoccupied with Jiraiya, he saw too late as Naruto's wind charged sword descended towards his chest, intending to slice him in two. The fish managed to evade the technique partially, but because of the wind chakra, a large cut was evident on Kisame's chest, before blood poured all over his body.

Seeing that his master needed help ASAP, the sword tried healing him, but chakra alone wasn't going to solve the problem as Kisame was losing a lot of blood. Suddenly, both the sword and Kisame started glowing and much to Jiraiya and Naruto's surprise, the sword and Kisame merged. The man's appearance, as he got up and wounds were now non-existent, were that of half man half shark.

"Hehe, that was a great attack there Uzumaki Naruto. It almost killed me, that's for sure. Itachi said not to underestimate you and now I can see why; however there is a reason people call me the non-tailed bijuu. The stronger my enemy is, the stronger I become, with Samehada by my side. I actually wanted to prolong this battle further, but I'm afraid I must cut this short.

Kisame started one familiar sequence of hand seals.

_**Suiton Bakushi Shouha **__(Water Release: Bursting Water Collision Waves Jutsu)_

Whereas last time, he created a river, now the water expanded, creating a water dome that ended up involving both Jiraiya and Naruto in it, which surprised both of them. Fighting on top of water was one thing, but below water was another thing entirely. They didn't have a choice as Kisame charged at him with speeds that only a shark possessed, before delivering solid strikes.

Naruto and Jiraiya had the same thought as they swam towards the bottle of the dome in hopes of escaping, but after a while, it was Jiraiya who realized that the dome was moving as well, because of the fact that Kisame was chasing after them. Naruto stopped as well as he saw Kisame charging at him with his claws, but Naruto managed to parry it with his sword, however Kisame attacked once more and managed to leave deep cuts on the blond's arms, much to his protest as this damn dome was preventing him from moving right.

"**You better think of something, Naruto. You can't use my chakra because he'll absorb it, you can't use fire techniques, because of the water dome. He won't let you gather nature chakra as well",**

_I know dammit, I guess I have to use that jutsu..._

So far, in Naruto's career there was only one jutsu that even with his chakra, he couldn't perform with satisfaction. Even now, the situation remained the same, but Naruto would have to try or else they would drown in this damn dome and everything he went through was all for nothing.

_Okay fox, I know my chakra coils will hurt like a bitch tomorrow, but for this technique, I'm going to need your help. Since he'll be absorbing your chakra, all I need is one push of it through my chakra coils, in order for me to sustain it longer. Once out of this dome, I'll use nature chakra and deal with this bastard. _

Naruto could hear the fox laughing inside his mind and praising the blond for the choice. Indeed, bad situations call for desperate measure.

* * *

**===With Kurotsuchi===**

After leaving the Tsushikage's office, the woman went to look for her target throughout the village. She tried the hotel he was staying, but had no luck as the receptionist told her the blond and a white haired man left a couple hours ago and went south. By now, she was jumping through the oak trees and many rocks that surrounded the village's training grounds, but so far no luck.

Upon nearing the gate, she was informed that they left the village with the condition of returning until night fall. She decided to leave as well, hoping for spying on his every move and look for an opportunity to take a blood sample from him.

As she was traveling towards the destination the Chuunin guards pointed to, she was surprised to feel two strong chakra presences nearby. When she arrived, she was surprised to see black flames scorching an entire field and two individuals fighting with every intention of killing one another. Looking closer, she was shocked to see that both of them had the famous Konoha Doujutsu Sharingan and that one of them was wearing the Akatsuki black robe with red clouds.

She saw the Akatsuki's opponent make some hand seals before a great number of fire dragon heads shot at the Akatsuki, before rising towards the sky. She managed to see that the technique burned the Akatsuki member's arm severely, but otherwise the man was fine. The sound of thunder called her attention and she looked up to see some cloud precipitation. However, as much entertaining as this fight was, she had a mission to accomplish, so she traveled further south, not even realizing that the Kage Bunshin that Naruto left watched the entire ordeal and became instantly suspicious. He would follow her, but the boss's orders were to see Sasuke's fight and tell him who won, so he remained.

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

His body was aching all over as the damn fish attacked both him and Jiraiya repeatedly. It was getting annoying to say the least; the blond never encountered a situation where he couldn't do anything about it and frankly, this wouldn't be the first….

_Kyuubi, now it's time…_

As Naruto started making hand seals, the fox did as asked and sent the great burst of charka through the blond's chakra coils. It hurt like a bitch, but if he didn't do this right now, he would not live to regret it and once he was out of the dome, Kyuubi's chakra could heal the damage made to his chakra coils. Jiraiya, for his part, was equally pissed off and he, just like Naruto, knew that he was powerless as Kisame would come time and time again, preventing him from summoning the toads in order to gather nature chakra. Suddenly, he sensed a very strong chakra spike coming from the blond's direction as Jiraiya noticed the usage of hand seals.

_Naruto, what are you thinking? You know he'll absorb it like he's doing from the beginning. _

As the blond finished the dragon seal, wind began gathering around him like a water current as its speed kept increasing, until the fox's sudden chakra burst managed to finalize the technique, that until now, Naruto never dare to perform from fear of suffering from chakra exhaustion. The once water current now became a potent whirlpool and before Kisame even realized the technique's usage, the entire water dome became nothing more than a water hurricane, blasting everything in its path, including the surprised Akatsuki member, as he was thrown from the hurricane with such force towards a large array of trees, through five of them, before he fell on the ground, nearly dead. Jiraiya was dumbstruck by the strength behind the technique, as he, also was thrown off the water dome. However, despite flying in equal speed to Kisame's, the man used his Doton affinity to the max and transformed his landing strip into a big swamp, thus cushioning the blow.

_**Fuuton Shippu no Hageshii **__(Wind Release: Furious Hurricane Jutsu)_

Back to Kisame, the sword was separated from his body, since it didn't have more chakra to save its wielder. He, though, was barely alive as his body was entirely beaten from the damn Jinchuuriki's technique. Revealing his true form was, until now, one hundred percent sure of his winning against both the Jinchuuriki and the Sannin and even his chakra absorbing skills prevented them from using chakra oriented attacks that would disrupt the water dome, but the chakra unleashed by Naruto was unreal and he just couldn't absorb it entirely, until the hurricane was formed and attacked him with all its might. He could feel his limit was upon him and nothing would prevent him from being killed. As he opened his eyes, he saw the blond kneeling on the ground as he suddenly coughed some blood, thus making Kisame grin. It must have been a toll on his chakra coils to use so much chakra all in once and the blond was feeling it full force now.

Suddenly, he heard steps to his right and saw the Sannin with a kunai on his hand. Right now, despite everything that happened, Jiraiya had to stop and wonder the irony of this situation. The entire fight involved high ranked jutsu with enough power to level a portion of Konoha and yet, all it takes right now is a simple kunai to slice Kisame's throat. By the time, Naruto already appeared next to him with his sword on his hand…rather his flame sword as his chakra coils were already fixed by the Kyuubi.

"Leave it to me Jiraiya, I'm the hunter-nin here not you…"

The Sannin leveled his eyes on Naruto for a moment, trying to understand why the blond was mentioning this now of all times as they were seconds away of ridding the elemental nations of Kirigakure's most dangerous criminal. Nevertheless, he did step aside as Naruto delivered the sword attack on Kisame's neck, making a clean cut, like hot knife through butter. The blond, quickly, used a sealing scroll and sealed the man's head off together with Samehada as proof of the kill. However, he left the body unscathed, which earned a questioned look from Jiraiya.

"Why don't you finish your job Naruto?" – Jiraiya asked.

The blond placed the sealing scroll inside the kunai holster as well as his sword inside the respective holster, before turning to meet his sensei.

"His body is not Konoha's responsibility. If you want to prevent someone from experimenting with his body, then by all means go right ahead. I have to go see Sasuke's fight…what the…"

Jiraiya and Naruto were startled by the sudden black fire that appeared near them and scorched Kisame's body like it was nothing. Both of them, immediately, left the clear and charged towards Sasuke and Itachi's location. However, both of them failed to realize a woman appearing at the clearing as her concealing Iwa technique vanished. She managed to conceal her presence just in time and managed to escape from the two's grasp as she inspected the fighting scene. When she was walking, though, she found some blood splattered on the floor. As she remembered, the blond target was kneeling on the ground, before she extracted a vial from her kunai holster and collected the blood.

_Huh, it appears my mission ends sooner than I expected. Huh, the old man will flip at this…still, the man these two killed was Hoshigaki Kisame, S-ranked missing-nin and member of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist…this development must be reported immediately._

* * *

**===Sasuke x Itachi===**

When Naruto and Jiraiya arrived at the fighting scene, they were bewildered to see a panting Sasuke being cornered by Itachi as he was strangely glowing red. His appearance was worse for wear as well as Sasuke and even his walking was being hampered by the many bruises on his body. Naruto saw the Kage Bunshin and immediately dispelled it only to receive image footing of the entire fight. AS Itachi closed in on Sasuke, no one of the spectators dared approach the two Uchiha brothers, but everyone knew the end of the fight was imminent. Sasuke was stripped from his chakra entirely and Itachi's disease managed its final strike, only allowing Itachi to walk like this from his will alone.

As Itachi stopped in front of Sasuke, he started to stretch his hands towards Sasuke's eyes, presumably to yank it and fuse it with his Sharingan eyes, however what shocked Sasuke the most was when Itachi, instead, just gave a light tap on his brother's forehead with two fingers with a smile on his face as this happened to be the moment he always carved for since the Uchiha Massacre. He hoped that it was Sasuke who came and killed him and get rid of the curse that befalls the older Uchiha. Before Sasuke could even realize what happened, Itachi was already on the ground as he succumbed to his disease and died.

Between thunders and a heavy rain, there isn't much one could see, but Sasuke's smile at finally revenging his clan was like a picture frame in the middle of the clearing.

It didn't take long before Sasuke passed out as well and joined his brother on the warm grass floor as Sasuke's team started moving to save their leader. However, within seconds, a sudden tornado appeared between the two Uchihas and with speed unmatched, sealed them into a scroll for preservation, before vanishing just like he appeared. The Hebi Team were shocked, beyond measure that the blond would do something like this, but even Karin couldn't know where he was, which only meant that he was already far away and he managed to capture Sasuke and Itachi's corpse.

A few miles away from the scene, Jiraiya waited as Naruto appeared with the medium sized scroll on his possession, before making the hand signs for the Kuchiyose no Jutsu.

Gamakichi appeared instantly and saluted both Naruto and Jiraiya, before Naruto gave the scroll to Gamakichi in order to be handed to Tsunade.

"Gamakichi, this scroll it to be guarded with utmost importance, if someone try to stop you from delivering to the Hokage, please return to your dimension and deliver to her, then. In case the old hag asks, inside the scroll are the report I quickly wrote about what transpired here, tell her to just open it and see for herself.

"**Got it Naruto, in case she has a reply, I'll return. If not, then, good luck on the exams"**

Naruto nodded, before the toad vanished. Jiraiya, for his part, could see the smile threatening to appear on his student's face and couldn't help but smile as well in appraisal for the blond's quick thinking. Actually, the man was more relieved than anything, from what Naruto told him the other day, he wouldn't waste time in killing Sasuke after his fated battle against Itachi, but instead, he just captured the man alive and sent to Konoha, receiving a lot of points in Jiraiya's opinion, regarding a supposed necessity to kill more and more non-stop.

"Okay Naruto, we have to go back to the village and register your name for the Chuunin Exams. Huh, you do well to laugh at the irony of this situation. Hoshigaki Kisame, S-ranked missing-nin, member of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist, was defeated by a mere Genin, how priceless…"

It wasn't funny in Naruto's opinion, that's for sure. This situation right here is what he kept telling to both Jiraiya and Tsunade that ranks mean little and the heads he sent back to the village were proof of that. So why the need to have either a Chuunin or Jounin rank at all? Oh well, in Naruto's mind, he should call it a win, after all not only he managed to kill an S-ranked missing-nin from Kirigakure, but he also managed to capture Uchiha Sasuke and send him to Konoha for questioning, thus ridding this world from the Sharingan menace, well, he guessed a couple warm-up fights in Iwa wouldn't be too bad and after that, he could go home and start his hunter-nin mission all over again.

"You sure think of this as amusing huh…but what's more amusing is the fact that a mere Genin as you said, managed to do more than a Sannin in the battle, now that's amusing"

Kyuubi's laughter echoed inside his mind as he saw Jiraiya scowling at him for the rude comment.

"Okay…let's just go and sign my name" – Naruto said, dismissing the issue.

* * *

**===In Konoha===**

More specifically in Danzou's house, bodies of his dead Anbu were sprawled on the floor, while each of them was slowly being eaten by the plant like shinobi. With his ability to sink to the ground and appear behind the enemy, it didn't take long for Zetsu to get rid of everyone, including the old war hawk. However, despite his Anbu's performance, the old man still had some tricks up his sleeve if the Sharingan on his apparently closed eye was any indication. In the end, though, Zetsu managed to deliver an intoxicating poison to his system that killed the man in seconds.

Suddenly, a man wearing the same Akatsuki robes, but with the orange mask, appeared as he looked at the scene in front of him. He never enjoyed Zetsu's taste of cannibalism, but it sure came in hand when the organization needed to dispose of the bodies. However, that was not why he came and rather some strange feeling about one of his subordinates Uchiha Itachi.

"Zetsu, congrats on the killing, now I sensed that something happened with Itachi, although I can't pinpoint his location, try finding him and report for me what happened"

The plant like man responded by sinking on the ground once more and leaving the vicinity along with the other man that, instead, used a jutsu of time and space and vanished as well.

* * *

**===At Tsunade's Office===**

Oblivious to what transpired at Danzou's house, Tsunade was having a good day, there wasn't much paperwork to be done and, contrary to most days, Shizune wasn't being a bitch about her responsibilities as Hokage. The woman was startled, though, when Gamakichi appeared in her office, because if this happened, then Naruto must be out there hunting again, when he should be in Iwa participating at the Chuunin Exams.

"Okay Gamakichi, what happened? Naruto is suspended from his hunter-nin status, is it another one of his kills?" – Tsunade asked, not at all surprised at the boy's 'professionalism'.

"**Naruto said that he wrote you a report of what happened in this scroll here Tsunade-sama. If its answers you seek, than by all means, read the scroll"**

Snorting at the toad in front of her, she opened the scroll and read for a while. The first paragraph was Naruto's way of saying that he didn't cross any boundaries of her suspension order. However, the rest of the test stopped her ability to breathe. It can't be true…how…it's impossible…what's this gaki made of, exactly? Those were Tsunade's thoughts about Naruto's ability to capture missing-nins as she looked at the Kanji below the test that, according to Naruto, it contained the Uchiha brother's corpses, while Itachi was killed by Sasuke and Sasuke was right now unconscious due to chakra exhaustion after the battle. A sudden scream for a whole team of Anbu as well as Shizune to show up, before everyone appeared as they saw the two Uchiha lying on the ground.

"Shizune, prepare Itachi's body for analysis; Tori (the Anbu captain) take Sasuke for Ibiki and look him in a high security chamber, afterwards. For now, his presence is to remain an A-ranked secret; I don't want anyone, below Jounin, to know about this"

After the orders were delivered and everyone vanished, Tsunade was caught rubbing her temples as she processed an annoying blond. Surely, she knew he was doing good as a hunter-nin, but not that good. If this wasn't enough, the letter still said that he, along with Jiraiya, managed to eliminate Hoshigaki Kisame as well and Naruto kept his head and sword to be further used as bounty in Kirigakure. Changing the subject, Tsunade called Shizune and asked to call all of Naruto and Sasuke's peers at the academy in order to relay what happened. Since all of them were Jounin, they would have access to the information anyway, even though she would have to take the part of Naruto being a hunter-nin at least until he returns from Iwagakure and tell everyone himself.

_Dammit, Naruto, just when I was appreciating the lack of paperwork for a change, you go and do this…_

* * *

_AN: Ok, that's the end of the chapter. What do you think?_

_Even though not only Itachi but Kisame is off the picture, Iwagakure got their hands on Naruto's blood and will, no doubt, get a match between his and the Yondaime Hokage's sample. _

_What will the Tsushikage do and how will Naruto respond once he heard the shocking news?_

_Stay tuned for next chapter._

_Furthermore, this will be my last update of 2009, so happy new year to all of you fanfiction maniacs._


	17. Identity Revealed

_**Author Note**_

_**First of all, I'd like to place my comments regarding Naruto Manga # 485. **_

_**I'm starting to understand Kishimoto's reason. Light and darkness are forever present in every human being. It's the balance that makes us humans. Upon dealing with the same conflict, there are those who choose the light side, however there are others that bend towards the dark side, namely criminals. However, it's merely a different in point of view and I happen to share this opinion. **_

_**Sasuke and Naruto experienced the same level of hatred and each made a different choice. Naruto chose not to abide by it, while Sasuke found himself blinded by it. **_

_**Of course, while I respect this way of thinking, I have a different view regarding the man's way of showing things. But this you already know, so I won't bother repeating the same stuff over and over.**_

_**Now, welcome to another chapter of "Path of the Hunter-nin". I know a great majority of the readers were waiting eagerly for this chapter and frankly so was I. **_

_**Last chapter's events were catastrophic and right now, Naruto and Jiraiya are in hostile territory, just waiting for the bomb to drop.**_

_**Here goes...**_

* * *

**Chapter 17 – Identity Revealed **

**Beta: Kyuubi123**

* * *

It was a clouded day as the rain was doing everything it could to wipe away the scene of destruction caused by Sasuke and Itachi's fight. The trees were all but wiped out and the entire clearing was surrounded by black fire, courtesy of one Uchiha Itachi. It easily resembled a full-scale war, had it not been for the fact that no bodies were sprawled on the ground. Anyone who witnessed this could only imagine how fierce the opponents were if they were able to cause this much destruction.

This was the scene that Zetsu saw upon materializing from the ground.

He managed to track Itachi's chakra to this location, but as he looked around neither Itachi nor Sasuke could be seen. Immediately, Zetsu concluded the worst. He knew Sasuke grew strong under Orochimaru's guidance. What was even stranger, though, was that Zetsu could also feel the snake's scent in the vicinity, further keeping him from knowing the truth of what exactly transpired here.

The worst news, right now, was that with Itachi's body gone so was the ring that enabled the demon sealing.

Certainly, Madara wouldn't be happy with the ordeal as the man had his expectations in regards to this fight. He foresaw Itachi's defeat to Sasuke as this happened to be what Itachi wanted in the first place. Then Madara would convince Sasuke to join Akatsuki's cause by revealing the hidden truth behind the Uchiha Massacre. Now, not only did Akatsuki not possess one of the rings, but also the group was now one member short.

Remembering about Itachi's partner, Zetsu vanished below ground once more and managed to track the shark shinobi's scent close to his position. When he materialized close to the place where Naruto and Jiraiya fought against Kisame, Zetsu frowned once more as the shark's body was nowhere to be found just like Itachi. All he saw was more dark fire and he reasoned that the hellish creation had somehow managed to spread through the entire forest.

Plus, he could feel the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki's chakra as well as the sannin Jiraiya, which meant the two, had fought and perhaps managed to defeat the former member of the Seven Swordsmen. Certainly, this meant even more terrible news to Akatsuki as not only was the organization two members short, but also their respective rings were forever lost.

* * *

**===In Konoha===**

When Tsunade woke up this morning, she thought it would be a good day.

Yesterday, her favorite hunter-nin managed to capture not only Uchiha Sasuke, but also Uchiha Itachi's dead corpse. Therefore, Konoha was as of now rid of the majority of its enemies, all courtesy of both Naruto and Jiraiya. The woman was just waiting for Sasuke to wake up, then she could have some time alone with him and teach him some manners of loyalty.

As she arrived in her office, though, she noticed the solemn look on everyone's faces and started to worry. She knew something bad happened because of her apprentice's face.

It got worse once the stationed Anbu requested her presence in a crime scene that occurred sometime yesterday. When she asked what happened, the Anbu chose not to relay the news right away so he instead stated that Tsunade should see for herself.

When she arrived at the scene, she was surprised to see that they were in Danzo's cottage. Something terribly wrong happened. She could feel it as the strong smell of blood was an indication. Upon entering the room, the Hokage had the decency to flinch in exasperation. Dozens of bodies lay dead on the ground, all covered by blood in one of the most horrible death scenes ever witnessed inside a closed space. She could very well see Anbu masks not allowing their identities to be revealed, but Tsunade wasn't aware of any Anbu agent either dead or missing in action, which meant that they are all part of Danzo's secret Root Anbu Program.

"Where is Danzo, Tori (bird)?" Tsunade asked, wanting to ask some questions as to the existence of his root program.

"He's right there Tsunade-sama…in the middle." Said the Anbu, startling the woman at the implication that the old war hawk met his end at the hands of whoever did this.

As she passed between the bodies, she could see his body splattered with blood as well. She was now wondering who had the power to do something like this.

The perpetrator not only managed to invade the village undetected, but also took care of Danzo's entire Root Anbu and the very man himself.

"Tori, call three medical teams here...I want all the bodies analyzed right away, including Danzo's. It goes without saying that the man ran everything hidden from both mine and the Sandaime's eyes. Who knows what we will find once we analyze the bodies. Also, tell the medic teams to present me with a report of who attacked this team. I want to know who managed to pass our hidden sensors. Last, no one is to know about what happened here."

"Right away Tsunade-sama" Saluted Tori as he vanished, leaving the Hokage alone for a while as she processed the implications of this event. Surely, Danzo wasn't any allied of hers, far from it actually. But the man had some secrets under his sleeve that she wanted to know about and now that he was dead, he ended up taking everything to his grave. Tsunade was already imagining the huge amount of paperwork as a result of this mess.

* * *

**===At Iwa===**

Unaware of the events that occurred in Konoha, both Jiraiya and Naruto were walking calmly towards the Chunnin Exams.

After the fight yesterday, both felt like taking some much deserved sleep, considering that passing through these god damn exams was Naruto's priority at the moment.

Granted he managed an impressive feat yesterday as he not only captured Uchiha Sasuke, A-ranked missing-nin, but he also managed to kill S-ranked missing-nin Hoshigaki Kisame. Surely, the man's bounty was enough to buy considerable land of Konoha just for him, even though money wasn't an issue to the blond. However, beneath all this, Naruto wanted nothing more than to carry out his duty as a hunter-nin and dispose of all of Konoha's enemies.

Jiraiya, for his part, was watching Naruto while scrutinizing him from head to toe. Everything from Kisame's fight and the Uchiha brothers' capture seemed surreal to the perverted sannin. If he heard someone telling him what happened, he would doubt it plain and simple. It just wasn't possible that one man had managed to both capture and kill high ranked missing-nins like the blond did so easily.

Granted Naruto didn't beat Kisame alone, but still the sannin had now little doubts of the hunter-nin's skills.

As they walked, a few genin appeared from all over the hidden nations as they were also heading towards the place of the exams. Each one Naruto saw, he was cursing both Tsunade and Jiraiya simply because none of them looked threatening enough to warrant him any challenge. However, the blond wasn't a stranger to the needed bureaucracy in order to be promoted, so he could very well get it over with as fast as possible and return out there to his hunt.

A few minutes later, the Konoha ninja stopped in front of a huge battle stadium that was at least twice the size of Konoha's.

The stadium was built with only granite rock and perfectly symmetric windows. How they managed to slice the rocks, though Naruto would never know, but he wasn't exactly interested in knowing about it. Once inside, they were surprised to see the huge number of genin waiting for the exams to start. What was even more surprising was that out of clearly two hundred genin, Naruto could count only five or ten that weren't from Iwa territory, including himself.

Jiraiya was suspicious instantly.

Never in the history of the Chunnin Exams had the hosting village sent so many of its own. Surely, the Tsushikage was up to something and Jiraiya could feel a terrible omen lingering in the air.

* * *

**===Yesterday At the Tsushikage's office===**

Minutes after Kurotsushi collected Naruto's blood, she went straight to her Kage's office as she delivered the sample to the old wrinkled individual. He was surprised that the girl already managed to complete the mission, but the man didn't waist one second before calling the head scientist in order to run a blood test and compare it with the Yondaime Hokage's blood.

To his smirk, the match was positive and now Iwa could have its revenge on Namikaze Minato for what he did.

Kurotsushi, though, brought interesting facts regarding how she was able to extract the blood sample. Apparently, Minato's son managed to dispose of S-ranked missing-nin Hoshigaki Kisame together with the sannin Jiraiya. It would make sense that the Yondaime's son would be skilled enough to deal with Kisame, but seeing that the ex-seven swordsmen belonged to the Akatsuki, certainly he wouldn't face the blond if he wasn't a target, meaning the blond was a jinchuuriki as well.

It was potentially troubling, the man reasoned.

Facing a Jinchuuriki in battle was probably the same as facing another kage perhaps even worse as the destruction would be immense. For now, the Tsushikage chose to play it slow. He would observe the blond's techniques thoroughly, before making a decision. Surely, he just couldn't send a number of his finest jounin, just to see a repetition of the Third Great Ninja War. Another factor of his plan was the sannin Jiraiya. Certainly, once Iwa attacked a ninja of Konoha the man will have an opening to retaliate.

This would need heavy planning, he reasoned.

* * *

**===Present time===**

Right now, Naruto and Jiraiya were talking about the exams as Jiraiya instructed the blond not to show more skills than a chunnin was able to, so that meant a few elemental techniques and heavy usage of taijutsu. The sword could be used, but under no circumstances, could he aim at vital spots.

The blond was okay with the rules. After all, if he was able to face 'A' and 'S'-ranked missing-nins, certainly a couple hundred genin wouldn't be much of an issue. The problem was the vast number of them, in his opinion. Suddenly, a total of ten jounin materialized from the ground with their arms crossed as they faced the huge number of genin inside the stadium. The one in the middle took one step forward and took a while to address the genin.

His appearance called the attention of everyone present as his entire body was entirely covered in wrapping. The only skin visible was dark and to those closer, they could very well see that it was carbonized. Covering the wraps was a blue kimono with the symbol of Iwa on his dark blue belt.

"Welcome everyone to the Chunnin Exams. The hidden village of Iwa takes great pride in the fighters that we create. As such, it's fair that this test should simulate all but fighting conditions. This stadium is one of the three that is located throughout the village as its size is perfect to test your skills and assess whether or not any of you deserves to be promoted to chunnin. My name is Makoto Shishio and I will be your proctor together with the team before me. The exams will compose of five parts and all of them will involve fighting."

As Shishio explained the exams, the huge board behind him sprang to life, showing five different arenas.

"As you can see, you'll be fighting in different arenas. Each of them simulates battle stations from all over the world. We have a rocky terrain, a large pool of water, an icy field found near Water and Snow Country, an arena filled with forests found in Fire Country and a desert arena found near Wind Country. Each of these fields has its difficulties to be dealt with, tempering your focus on the enemy. Here in Iwa, a chunnin is a born warrior, as such it will be expected of you is to survive throughout the battles. The rules are simple, anything goes especially killing. Death is our profession and as such a chunnin cannot fear death. Plus, the arena will be suspended in mid-air, so if one of you ends up falling from the arena, you'll be disqualified."

As the jounin explained, Naruto and Jiraiya were looking at each other. These exams were beginning to get interesting in Naruto's opinion and certainly Jiraiya could see the blond's enthusiasm. The perverted sannin was okay with everything, as long as the blond didn't follow the rules and kill everyone.

"Okay Naruto, try either throwing the opponent out of the ring or knock them unconsciousness. But no killing, you hear me!" Naruto nodded, but Jiraiya continued, explaining about the seriousness of the situation. "You must remember the past Naruto. Iwa are scum and they tend to resort to dirty tactics in order to get what they want. I wouldn't put it past them if someone blamed you for overkill and demand retribution. You understand the situation?"

"Don't worry about it. It's not in my plans to show off. I have another identity to keep you know. I don't want people to point and shout my reputation name to everyone." Naruto said, as he was paying attention to the board with the different types of field.

It didn't take much before the image changed and Naruto was getting pumped. The Iwa Jounin Shishio turned to explain the exams.

"As you all can see, we managed to settle the fights accordingly to each field. All of you will be divided in five groups as displayed on the board. Each group will be settled in one specific terrain. The second phase will consist of different fields and depending on the number that advances to the next stage we'll settle a group from three to six genin that will fight amongst each other. The remaining genin will then reach the third and last phase which consists of a tournament, like shown on the board. Upon the end of the second phase, the twenty will take a number from the box next to me. These numbers will determine your position."

Now, the board was showing the groups designation as Shishio concluded.

"Now, let's proceed with the first phase. All of you check the terrains you've been assigned to and get moving" Shouted Shishio as the ground started to shake.

Naruto and Jiraiya could very well see different terrains being formed throughout the stadium arena. To their right, was the icy terrain and to the left was the rocky one. In front of them, was the lake terrain as well as the Fire Country simulation terrain. To their back was the desert arena as a sudden blast of sand engulfed the artificial mountains, confusing Naruto a bit. Only one ninja managed to manipulate sand and Naruto knew it to be his friend Gaara.

By this time, the jounin left the arena and filled the audience together with high officials and the rest, composed by chunnin and civilians.

A sudden sound alerted the genin, before they all looked at a tower that grew from the ground with two nice mahogany chairs which presumably belonged to the Tsushikage and his guest. When the tower stopped growing, four individuals emerged out of nowhere. The Tsushikage was easily recognizable as he happens to be an old midget and the huge Jounin behind him was easily comparable to the biggest Akimichis in Naruto's opinion.

To the kage's right, Naruto could see his friend Gaara taking a seat with his sister Temari by his side as bodyguard. The fact that Gaara accepted an invitation from Konoha's enemy was most troubling to Naruto, considering that Suna is allied with the hidden village in the leaves. However, that was a problem reserved for Tsunade to deal with, not him.

Looking at the gigantic board, Naruto could see his terrain group. It was the rocky terrain, where earth based techniques had the advantage. It didn't take long for Naruto to consider the word 'sabotage'. Granted the number of Iwa genin were unheard of, but Naruto thought that at least one from another village would be in his group. Up on the stands, Jiraiya was looking at this as well in great suspicion. He knew the Tsushikage to be a very wise individual and equally cunning.

The bad feeling was increasing, Jiraiya thought. It was wise of him to come here with Naruto as he was feeling that the two were about to enter inside an enemy territory with minor chance of escape.

_Maybe, it's wise to consider a backup plan in case something happens. Who knows what Iwa has been doing in terms to their revenge on Minato._

Back to the arena, Naruto was already positioned on top of the rocky terrain as the rest of the genin were located. He also saw what appeared to be a rather bulky jounin as his eyes were focused entirely on the blond. He had a deep scar cross his jugular, which meant that this man must have crossed the gates of hell and come back.

* * *

**===At Konoha===**

Upon opening his eyes, Uchiha Sasuke frowned in dismay.

He remembered fighting his brother to the death in an opening clearing in Earth Country, beneath a heavy rain and now, he was inside a dark room. It was so dark that he didn't know if he was dreaming or not. He didn't know if he was even alive for that matter as he knew people could die from chakra exhaustion. Suddenly, a huge light invaded the room consumed by darkness and Sasuke had to protect his eyes for a while.

Looking around, Sasuke realized he was inside a prison cell and the walls were filled with seals as they were now glowing. Suddenly, a deep voice emerged from an intercom located on the ceiling.

"I see you've awakened Uchiha Sasuke. Let me be the first to welcome you to Hidden Village in the Leaves."

The sudden voice surprised Sasuke a lot. He was in Konoha? But how? What happened after he defeated Itachi?

All these questions were running in his mind a mile a second, before he voiced them to the no one.

"Who the hell are you? How did I get here? Answer me, dammit" The Uchiha's voice echoed inside through the empty hallways as this prison happened to be reserved for the worst of criminals.

"You're under the impression that a criminal has the right to demand answers. A-ranked missing-nin Sasuke Uchiha, guilty of betraying the Leaf and joining Konoha's strongest enemy Orochimaru. By this fact alone, you'd be dead in my opinion. Now, you are located inside a high security facility within Konoha, a place reserved for A-ranked criminals and above. The possibility of escape is literally impossible as the seals located on the walls are chakra suppressors. Also, since you possess the curse seal, further measures were issued to prevent any outside interference. Now, you'll be interrogated by both me and the Godaime Hokage"

Afterwards, the intercom link shut down and utter silence remained. But Sasuke's mind was in turmoil as he tried to gather yesterday's events. Granted he was a missing-nin now and any hunter-nin could've captured him while he was unconscious, but what about his team? Certainly, they would've taken him to a safe place, while he rested. Suddenly, realization hit him like a ton of bricks as he remembered the only person who would bother bringing him back to Konoha.

'_The Dobe_'

Both that Sannin Jiraiya and Naruto ended up engaging Itachi's partner Kisame and during Sasuke's fight with Itachi, not once did he see Naruto approaching to capture him. But once more, wouldn't his team prevent Naruto from doing so? Sasuke wouldn't imagined them to be this incompetent as to let his body be left open to be captured, but seeing the circumstances, he was considering their uselessness. Nevertheless, one thing Sasuke knew and this fact alone made him smile.

'_Itachi is dead. The man who murdered our entire family and ruined my life, is dead and by my hands'_

Sasuke accomplished his ultimate goal. There wasn't much going on for him, except maybe the revival of his clan, but that required a female party and certainly, he couldn't think of anyone who fit the criteria. As this lane of thought was going on, both Tsunade and Ibiki entered the chamber, alerting Sasuke's attention. Certainly, Sasuke recognized the Hokage as she happened to be the one who healed him a long time ago. Plus, Orochimaru had gathered an extensive material regarding this woman's life, containing both her skills as her weaknesses.

Not that Sasuke bothered to read it, but he knew it existed.

The man with the bandana wasn't a total stranger to Sasuke, as they were properly introduced when he was but a kid inside the old Uchiha Compound. Also, he recognized him from his first and last Chunnin Exams.

"Sasuke Uchiha…" Tsunade called, as she crossed her arms beneath her incredibly large breasts, while displaying a serious look on her face. "Seeing as you betrayed this village on your own free will, you won't be submitted into trial. Therefore, you are hereby considered guilty and will receive a penalty dignified by the level of offensive you committed"

"Right now Tsunade, there is nothing going on for me. My clan was avenged, that was my true purpose."

Sasuke was rather calm in Hokage's opinion and she was well-versed in human psychology to determine that he was indeed speaking the truth. Turning her eyes slightly, she looked at her partner in interrogation and noticed that Ibiki was looking at Sasuke with focus as in he was trying to see some level of negative emotions coming from a criminal. Nevertheless, she knew what she had to do with him.

"Sasuke, I won't even bother knowing whether or not your actions were justified. You committed a heavy sin to Konoha and therefore, must be punished. Nevertheless, the penalty itself won't be decided by me. Worse than betraying the village, you betrayed those who believed in you and worshipped you as part of a special group. Therefore, it's only fair that they decide on a suitable punishment"

Sasuke suddenly took his eyes from the ground and focused on the blonde woman's smirk for a while. Surely, he knew about this group she was mentioning, but the truth is that was the only thing he dreaded at this point. He didn't have a problem with the majority of them. Shino, Shikamaru, Neji, Chouji, Kiba, Hinata, Tenten, even the green spandex wearing freak called Lee. But Sakura and Ino were two of the lot that really infuriated him to no end. Granted those two must have grown and probably weren't as infatuated with him as before.

Tsunade smiled upon seeing the reaction coming from Sasuke. Certainly, he didn't see it coming. She figured that the Konoha 11 (minus Naruto of course) would be able to consider a suitable punishment to Sasuke that the village would agree on, seeing as the majority of them belonged to the major clans within the village and their view would be backed up by the clan heads.

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

As the fights initiated, the blond remained near the jounin responsible for the rocky terrain as he studied the genin's pathetic movements and form. Jutsus were performed with a lack of control and the hand seals speed weren't that impressive. From his view, Iwa had done nothing to focus on their shinobi's weak points. They were focusing only on teaching them jutsu after jutsu without even worrying that the majority of these genin were in need of assistance and fast.

The fights were scheduled so that each genin could fight at least twice, thus showing their chunnin level skills to the judges. But in order for one to pass to the second stage, each genin had to win both times. As Naruto took his position on the left side of the arena, a rather bulky individual appeared on the other side with a smug look on his face, seemingly sure of his victory. When the judge allowed the fight to begin, Naruto's opponent charged at the blond with a direct hit on the face, but Naruto just focused on defending the blow with his arm, before he moved his defending arm to the left in order to stop a high kick. The fight remained like this for a while, the bulky genin tried all the strikes he could muster on Naruto but none of them were effective as Naruto defended them all.

Naruto could feel that he was focusing chakra to the strikes, but while it was a valuable effort, the hunter-fox just focused on pure wind manipulation to diminish the blow's impulse. Suddenly, he grew impatient with this and vanished in thin air, just as his opponent was to deliver a front kick to his chest. Naruto appeared behind the man and landed a powerful punch on his face, which sent him towards the ground with a heavy thud. The opponent, whose name was Ishimaru, got up while being cheered up by a girl and a boy, presumably from the same genin team. Focusing chakra on his feet, Ishimaru charged once more, earning a sigh from the blond as he focused on three simple hand seals.

_**Fuuton Reppushou**__ (Wind Release: Gale Wind Palm Jutsu)_

Ishimaru didn't know what hit him, but the jounin could very well see the flow of wind chakra as it sent the bulky genin flying towards an incoming rock, before he hit his head, falling to unconsciousness immediately. Naruto just remained there with hands inside his pocket as he stepped out of the rocky terrain, while the medic-nins approached to heal Ishimaru. These fights were a waste of his time, in his opinion. He could very well be facing tough opponents out there, but instead he was facing weak genin.

Meanwhile, Kyuubi was finding the situation amusing as he constantly let out a chuckle every time he heard Naruto complaining inside his mind.

"**You know that the more you complain, the more you make me happy, right Naruto. I'm betting with myself over how long it will take for you to blast this entire stadium from boredom."**

"_I'll take that bet and I assure you that it won't take long…still I'm more interested in understanding why Iwa is sending such a high amount of weak genin to the chunnin exams. It's my knowledge that the village's best interest is to show their best genin so that clients hire them. At least, this was and has always has been Konoha's way of thinking" _

The fact that Naruto could converse with someone was a blessing, even if said person happened to be the damn fur ball. He noticed one genin standing out on the crowd as he managed to perform a medium level doton jutsu flawlessly. Maybe, Iwa has some talent after all.

Up in the kage's stand, Gaara was focusing his attention on both Naruto's group and the icy terrain group as three Suna genin happens to be competing as well. He chuckled once he saw how easy Naruto dealt with his opponent and imagined how bored the blond must have been right now. The Kazekage knew why Naruto had to take a Chunnin Exam and even though he wouldn't agree to it, it was certainly enjoyable to see him fight. Temari was thinking the same thing, though she was looking at Naruto's wardrobe, while searching through her memories as to whom that leather outfit belonged to.

The Tsushikage's attention was also on the Yondaime Hokage's legacy. He could plainly see how easily he dealt with Ishimaru and even the ease in which he performed that wind jutsu. Surely, he didn't belong to this place, but since he was here, the old man wasn't complaining at all. In fact, he was smiling from the inside. Iwa's morale after the last shinobi war suffered quite the blow because of Namikaze Minato and even though the village flourished once more, it left a scar. Now, as the blond progressed through the Chunnin Exams, he would realize that his opponents wouldn't be as easy as they should be.

_Just you wait, son of the Yondaime….soon, you'll suffer just like Iwa has because of your father. _

Turning his neck slightly to address his former bodyguard as some preparations were in order for his plan of testing Naruto.

Gaara, for his part, saw the swift motion and frowned in suspicion. The Kazekage was smart and he knew how to read people's subtle body languages. The ex-jinchuuriki considered not accepting the invitation of coming to the Chunnin Exams, seeing as his village was allied with Konoha, but seeing as Tsunade wasn't against it, he accepted. The Tsushikage was a crafty individual and the man was smiling the entire time as he looked at Naruto's fight from afar.

Gaara's danger sense was tingling somewhat and he started observing the man from the corner of his eyes.

Back to Naruto, his second fight was up and his opponent was rather short in his opinion. He had black hair that would rest on his shoulders, raven eyes and a white Kimono for an outfit. Upon the given authorization, Naruto's opponent called Masaboro just vanished in thin air, surprising the blond. He felt the source of chakra coming from his right side and dodged just in time to evade a strong kick from the little genin. He didn't take too long and vanished once more, before appearing behind Naruto with a punch to his neck, but as soon as the attack landed, Naruto was replaced with a boulder.

The little genin was surprised with the fast kawarimi, but he wasn't fast enough to dodge as Naruto came flying with a roundhouse kick from Masaboro's blind side sending him flying towards the set of boulders. As Naruto observed the opponent's flight, he sensed an immense usage of chakra being expelled from Masaboro's body.

Suddenly, the boy started spinning until he managed to connect both his feet on the mountain, before pumping as much chakra as possible to increase the speed of his flight towards Naruto. As his feet let go of the rock contact, the kid increased his speed tenfold as he charged head strong against the genin/hunter-nin. Naruto, by this time, was making hand seals as the distance shortened. By the time, Masaboro reached Naruto's position; the blond finished the last hand seal.

_**Fuuton Daitoppa **_(_Wind Release: Great Breakthrough Jutsu)_

The sudden gust of wind surprised Masaboro as his body was propelled once more to the rocky region, but this time his chakra ability couldn't help him as Naruto's wind propelled chakra was preventing him from even moving, until he hit his head, falling unconscious. Naruto was getting suspicious of his victory, because he felt the usage of doton chakra just before Masaboro hit the wall and he didn't want to lower his guard until the proctor declared the winner.

Suddenly, the body of Masaboro turned to mud and quite to Naruto's smirk, Masaboro materialized from behind him.

"You're different than the others, kid. I can see you have brains instead of just muscle. Now, though, it's time for this fight to end"

Masaboro didn't wait for Naruto to finish, before he charged against Naruto throwing kunai at Naruto as he continued to charge. He hoped that Naruto would dodge the incoming projectiles, but instead he just grabbed two kunai from his holster and blocked them all, before charging against Masaboro with a kick. The genin managed to dodge using his skills with chakra, before he flipped his body and aim a punch on Naruto's face. The blond caught it with his hand and twisted Masaboro's body, throwing him on the ground.

Once more, Masaboro transformed into mud, before appearing from a distance as he began a series of hand seals.

_**Doton Doryuutaihou **__(Earth Release: Mud Cannon Jutsu)_

Suddenly, Masaboro gathered mud inside his lungs, before expelling a fast stream of mud towards Naruto. However, before the attack hit, the blond already managed to dodge as he then charged at Masaboro while doing hand seals of his own, before gathering as much air as he could for consecutive shots.

_**Fuuton Kaze Dangan **__(Wind Release: Wind Bullet Jutsu)_

Masaboro was dazzled at the speed of a wind technique, but as the shots reached his limbs he knew it was going to be painful. One who hit his stomach was enough force to propel his body, sending him flying towards the artificial mountain right behind him. Just as he was about to hit the mountain, his body transformed to mud once more, just like Naruto predicted, before Masaboro materialized behind the blond, panting as he'd used almost all his chakra. Smiling, Naruto turned and stared at Masaboro.

The kid was at his limit and he more than anyone knew when he was beat.

"I know you're way stronger than me and I'm not a fool as to believe anything I do will work on you…proctor I give up" Masaboro said, before the proctor declared Naruto the winner, quite to the blond's growing interest in the boy.

As the two got out of the terrain, Masaboro returned to his teammates who congratulated him for the fight, before Naruto appeared surprising the boy's team a bit. As they looked at Naruto, they were wondering why he was even here, seeing as he didn't even try very hard and one of Iwa's best genin couldn't even touch the guy.

"Masaboro-san, that was a good fight, I can see you'll do well in the future. I'd promote you to chunnin right now. Knowing when to back off, it's what will save you out there sometimes."

As Naruto complemented the genin, he turned and placed both hands inside his pockets before walking towards the proctor as he got the last fight of this terrain. Masaboro, for his part, watched Naruto from afar and smiled at his back. One thing about the Tsushikage was that in order to receive Iwa's major clans' support, he always shared sensitive information with them and the blond in question happened to be one of sensitive information.

Uzumaki Naruto, son of the Yondaime Hokage Namikaze Minato and killer of many Iwa ninjas, including almost half of his clan. However, while his family loathed the Yondaime Hokage for what he did against their clan, Masaboro didn't. He knew the ugly truth of the ninja world and acknowledged the Yondaime Hokage's strength for not only defeating single handedly the biggest hidden village of all the elemental nations, but also saving Konoha from the strongest Bijuu ever to grace the elemental nations, the nine-tailed fox.

Now, the man's son was here competing at the Chunnin Exams and he had the privilege of fighting against such a fierce shinobi. Certainly, whatever Iwa planned to do with Naruto, he wouldn't take part in it. It was one thing to get revenge for what Minato did, but it's another thing entirely to take this revenge on the man's son, like he was in any way responsible for his father's acts.

* * *

**===Second Part===**

Half an hour later, the first part of the exams was over and sixty genin passed to the second part. This part consisted of group fights. There would be ten fights where six genins would fight amongst each other in each group. Then, the last 10 genin would compete amongst each other in a tournament, this being the third and last part of the exam. Naruto saw his fight and frowned instantly. All his opponents were from Iwa, not one from another village. He was getting even more suspicious than before, but he couldn't do anything if he wanted to pass this god damn exam.

Jiraiya, for his part, was also worried about Iwa's intention. Surely, this wasn't a coincidence; it wasn't random like suggested by the Jounin. Getting up, he knew a plan B was a must just in case Iwa decided to do something about Konoha or more specifically Naruto. It wasn't possible in his opinion that Iwa would attack Naruto based on a hunch that Naruto is Minato's son, even if Jiraiya knew it to be a fact. He was but a carbon copy of Minato.

Back to Naruto, the second part was already announced by the Jounin Shishio and now a new terrain was being prepared by a group of seal experts. As they focused chakra on the scroll, the area started to shake as mountains began to grow around the center of the stage, while one shinobi took care of the river creation in the middle. Naruto observed this with interest as now he could explore different skills. First, he'd only shown wind manipulation, but now he could focus on his second affinity, fire. While he wasn't able to focus on Kyuubi's chakra, at least not for the moment, he could perform fire techniques without the fox's aid. It just took a bit more chakra as it was not his main affinity.

As the fights started, Naruto could very well ascertain some talents that he was still due to see coming from Iwa. Some genin even displayed considerable skills in different affinities and some used swords. However, one thing a hunter always knows is when he is about to walk into a trap.

Naruto could very well spot shinobi that like him didn't belong to this exam. But while he was actually a genin in rank but Jounin in skills, some were Jounin in rank disguised as genin.

One of them managed to perform A-ranked doton techniques with such finesse that even the best doton users in Konoha couldn't match him. Plus, their agility was on pair with both him and his sensei Hatake Kakashi. The worst part was that the proctors weren't showing signs of being impressed, which to Naruto, was a very dumb thing to do, considering the circumstances. Suddenly, he saw one genin charge against a genin from Kirigakure, before he imbedded a kunai through his skull, surprising all those present.

Sure, killing was allowed in the exams, but doing so with such finesse required talent on the field.

By now, four out of the ten fights were already over as it proved to be quite the show for the audience. Surely, by now everyone didn't regret attending to the exams, but the fifth fight proved to be quite entertaining as five Iwa genins and one from Konoha would fight amongst each other.

As the six genin entered the field and stepped on the water, Naruto watched the five genin all smirking at him. They took positions around him as if they were teaming against him, which didn't come as a surprise to the blond, considering he was indeed the target of this exam. That much he knew as he watched each genin take positions while watching the blond's movements. To some of the audience, this act wasn't seen as cheating, seeing as the majority were Iwa shinobi. In their right mind, they believed that anyone from Konoha is to be treated as a mortal enemy and therefore should be killed no matter what. Nevertheless, there wasn't any rule stating that people couldn't form teams for a moment and take out the strongest opponent.

And Naruto could only smile at this as he now had the chance to use his katana for the first time in this event. Closing his eyes, he grabbed the sword's hilt before pulling out from its sheath in slow motion. He knew that once the proctor authorized the battle to start, all five of them would charge at the same time, so he was already concentrating a heavy load of chakra for this special technique. Suddenly and much to the blond's expectation, just as the proctor authorized it, all five of the genin simply vanished within a blur and charged Naruto at the same time.

Positioning his sword on his shoulder, Naruto just focused on a single one handed seal as he started molding the necessary chakra.

_**Fuuton Shippuu Shouheki **__(Wind Release: Hurricane Barrier Jutsu)_

The sudden gathering of wind started formed around Naruto, until it escalated to a little typhoon. By the time the genin approached to land the strike, it increased to a powerful hurricane circulating around Naruto as it managed to send every one of the five genin flying. Naruto wasn't just going to stand there as he focused chakra to his legs and vanished towards the closest enemy. The first two by seeing Naruto approaching, tried to counter-attack, but received a brutal strike from the hilt of the sword. Naruto promised he wouldn't kill anyone, but that didn't mean he couldn't strike out hard. He managed to hit one in the chest, but had to dodge once the other came with a strong kick on his back.

Doing some back flips, Naruto managed to dodge incoming mud projectiles from the genin closer to him. Dodging the last projectiles, Naruto flipped his body landing on the ground, before charging against the shooter with great speed. Placing his sword once more inside the holster, Naruto started making hand seals and this time for a fire jutsu as his strategy was clear in his mind.

_**Katon Goukakyuu no Jutsu **__(Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu)_

The immense fireball was enough to blind the Iwa genin, but he had to dodge otherwise the technique would burn him alive. However, upon dodging he went face to face with Naruto as he delivered an upper kick on his chin, sending the man flying. However when the blond was about to jump and land another strike, the guy displayed some heavy evasive skills and landed on the ground, before charging Naruto with a katana. The blond parried easily, but the strength of the attack said a lot of things and one in particular was that this man was no genin.

As he parried another attack, Naruto blocked the attack with the aid of his muscles, forcing the attacker to drop his balance as he landed a strong kick on his chest. However, when he was about to finish the second genin, Naruto's danger sense warned him to move as a number of projectiles fell on his prior position like a fierce rain. Back flip after back flip, the blond was having a bit of trouble dealing with these five without killing them. Suddenly, Naruto sensed the usage of heavy chakra as he saw one making hand seals.

_**Doton Doryuudan no Jutsu **__(Earth Release: Mud Dragon Projectile Jutsu)_

'_Certainly, no genin could ever perform this technique_' Thought Naruto as he saw the earth dragon appear from the water.

Because of the water, the mud projectiles hardened and the blond knew one hit would hurt like crazy. As the dragons shot the projectiles, Naruto was using chakra to evade them as he charged against the earth user. Within no time, the blond jumped on top of the dragon and landed a fierce flying kick on his face, before flipping his body and landing a strong kick on the genin's stomach, sending him unconscious instantly.

Afterwards, he had to dodge as another came with some taijutsu moves.

The audience was cheering as this fight was amazing. Well, at least those who weren't from Iwa, of course as they were cheering for their village's genin. They wanted Naruto dead, but the blond was very skilled.

Back at the fight, Naruto already dealt with three genin, leaving two alone to attempt the impossible. If five of them weren't able to deal with him, then how could two ever hope to?

Certainly, Naruto wouldn't think of giving them the opportunity as he started molding a fast series of hand seals for

_**Fuuton Kaze no Yaiba **__(__Wind Release: Wind Sword Jutsu)_

Suddenly, two wind swords materialized out of nowhere and charged at the two remaining genin. They couldn't react fast enough and the technique pierced their skin hard. Naruto, though, targeted their shoulders as he couldn't kill them, but it was enough as they both were knocked out before being attended by the medic-nins soon afterwards. The crowd grew silent as they had just observed one genin manage to beat five on his own.

The Tsushikage lost his smiling face as each Iwa shinobi fell to Naruto's hands.

He saw his skills and he was impressed. According to his file, he was but an eighteen year old genin. And if experience served the old man, these two qualities don't bode well together. Usually, these types of shinobi are good only to occupy the battle front as simple pawns. However, this Naruto person wasn't a genin, well not in skills that's for sure. Gaara, for his part, smirked the entire time as he saw the old man's smile diminishing each minute.

_Well, who told you to bet against Uzumaki Naruto, you old fart? _Thought Gaara as he saw Naruto leaving the field.

* * *

**===Third Part===**

With the end of the second exam, ten extremely gifted genin managed to advance to the third and last part, although the vast majority of them were a few seconds away from passing out. The consecutive fights took a great toll of their chakra and stamina save for Naruto and a few jounin disguised as genin, the rest wouldn't be able to fight.

Luckily for them there was an hour break issued as the genin just chose their numbers and more specifically their positions on the tournament chart.

Naruto took the number five, meaning he was in a rather comfortable position.

Because of his position, he was already in the semi-finals. This way, he could rest a bit and investigate a little.

Everything in this exam smelled bad to him and the feeling of walking into a trap was increasing as time passed by. Still his mind couldn't process as to why he would be targeted in the first place? As far as he knew, the only ones after him was the Akatsuki and Iwa couldn't possibly be affiliated with them.

Granted he heard bits and pieces of the village's involvement close to eight years ago with the group, as the Sandaime Tsushikage needed a mercenary group to take care of some dirty secret, but as far as he knew, it was a onetime deal. What could Iwa possibly want with a nobody like him? Naruto was an orphan and even though he managed to sabotage some evil plans from coming to fruition, none of them ever involved Iwa-nins.

In fact, this was the first time he'd ever fought against someone from this village.

An hour later, the fights initiated as the terrain now changed to a plain field like the one in Konoha. However, the blond wasn't interested as he was processing the information he collected so far.

The hidden village of stone always had issues with Konoha because of the Yondaime's deeds after the Last Great Shinobi War and the fact that Naruto was from Konoha meant that somehow Iwa was targeting him because of his village. But that fact alone didn't count as much. Surely, Iwa would be worried over attacking a Leaf Shinobi outside the limits of the exam, since it would cause a war between nations.

Whatever reason that old fart of the Tsushikage had in mind would have to wait as Naruto's fight was already up. The fights, up to now, were fairly quick. The jounins wiped the floor with their opponents and a few prodigies managed to win with impressive skills. However, Naruto's opponent was already tired from the two prior fights. The fighting didn't even commence and Naruto vanished in a blur, surprising his opponent who happened to be from Suna. He manifested behind the shocked genin and landed a swift blow to the back of his neck, sending the little boy to unconsciousness.

Given that he was at the semi-finals, Naruto was now the exam's finalist as he waited for his opponent from the other side of the chart. The blond didn't doubt for a second that his opponent would be one of the Jounin. Of course, he was still due to realize Iwa's true goal but one thing he was certain about.

_**He was the target!**_

As the final fight was up, the crowd was eager to witness two prodigies one from Konoha and one from Iwa. Naruto managed to show impressive skills, even if unlike his opponent, he had yet to kill anyone. For a civilian, killing someone meant you're superior, but for a ninja winning the battle without killing requires more skill and finesse. Certainly, hadn't they wanted the blond killed, they would vote for Naruto to win.

As the two combatants joined in the middle of the field next to the main proctor Shishio, they were eying each other with severe scrutiny. Naruto could assemble some interesting data on his opponent. The distance set between them that serves both for offensive and defensive purposes, the advanced taijutsu stance and the incredible usage of the **Henge no Jutsu **as he was disguised after all.

Just as Shishio announced to the crowd the beginning of the tournament match, the Iwa genin vanished from sight and landed a straight punch on Naruto's jaw, surprising the blond as he didn't see him move.

Nevertheless, the punch came without much strength as Naruto flipped his body and landed on the ground, before charging his opponent with a straight kick. His opponent blocked, though, before vanishing once more and appearing behind Naruto before he even knew what happened.

When Naruto turned, he met a straight kick on his face as he was sent flying.

Focusing some chakra to his eyes, Naruto focused his attention on the man's moves and while he couldn't see clearly, the blurs were enough to allow him some evasive movements. As the blond dodged a fast kick, he took his sword once more and started attacking his opponent. Because of the kenjutsu advantage, the blond now focused chakra on his feet as he increased his speed. While intercepting the Iwa genin, Naruto combusted his katana with fire chakra, transforming the already menacing sword into a deadly one.

Certainly, Naruto had already faced this kind of skill before and it was recent, he could tell.

It was when the man vanished that Naruto suddenly remembered his second opponent Masaboro. Somehow, this guy must belong to Masaboro's clan as the skills were the same. All of a sudden, the opponent produced four mud bunshins as they surrounded Naruto. Each of them started making hand seals as they all finished at the same time with the snake hand seal.

_**Doton Taijuu Dorodan **__(Earth Release: Multiple Mud Projectile Jutsu)_

The bunshins shot consecutive mud projectiles at Naruto who for his part and by instinct did a couple hand seals for a minor fuuton defensive jutsu, thus defending the mud projectiles. Even before the techniques ended, Naruto needed to take care of the bunshins, so he summoned ten kage bunshins that managed to wipe out the entire group of mud bunshins.

When he was about to face the Iwa genin, the man vanished once more and landed a fierce punch on his chest. As the blond skidded on the ground, he was getting sick of this shit. It was time for action.

_Kyuubi, I had enough of this guy, it's time to wipe the floor with him..."_

"**I thought you'd never ask brat. All that fight was beginning to bore me to death" **

As Naruto focused on the fox's chakra, his eyes transformed to that of the fox's and his whiskers were more defined. Now as his vision improved, he could very well see the man move as Naruto managed to dodge the kick, before landing a reverse kick on his chin, sending him flying.

Then, Naruto charged with unknown speed and landed a fierce kick on his abdomen, crushing his body on the ground. His opponent spit out blood instantly as his lungs were having trouble inhaling the much needed air. Also, because of the strike, he lost his focus on the henge technique thus showing to the entire crowd, the real image of Masaboro's father Senkousochi Kenshin.

* * *

_**(AN: Just for your knowledge, Senkousochi means Flash Step in Japanese. It happens to be Masaboro's clan name. Their skills rely on a similar skill to Tsunade's perfect chakra control, but they use it to increase their speed and for evasive maneuver)**_

* * *

Letting go of the Kyuubi's chakra, Naruto looked at the proctor Shishio demanding explanations as to why an Iwa jounin was disguised as a genin.

However, Shishio remained silent as he looked at the blond. Suddenly, Naruto saw a dwarf hovering on the ground near Shishio, before realizing in surprise, that he was the Tsushikage.

The man was smiling from ear to ear, probably because unknown to Naruto, he would now get revenge for what Minato did a long time ago.

"There was an impressive display of skills, dear boy. Too bad you'll die here....son of the Yondaime Hokage..."

Naruto's eyes suddenly widened to unknown proportions at the sudden implication of what the man said. He was so perplexed right now that he didn't even acknowledge the sudden rain of kunai that shot from behind the stadium and outright covered the sunlight, all having the same target.

* * *

_**AN: Man, I'm evil. I'll end the chapter right here.**_

_**So, Iwa showed its true color as the acts of the Yondaime Hokage drove them to kill his son in retribution?**_

_**Will this the end of our hero? Isn't there someone to save him?**_

_**Also what will happen to Sasuke as Tsunade gave the authority to Konoha 11?**_

_**Stay tuned for next chapter as all of these answers will be supplied.**_


	18. Revelations and Consequences

**Author Note**

Hi there and welcome to another chapter of the Path of the Hunter-nin. Last time, major revelations struck a chord in Naruto and he froze. The Tsushikage capitalized on it and outright attacked Naruto, with the promise of avenging Iwa for what the Yondaime Hokage did to them at the last shinobi great war. Now, what will happen? Will Naruto meets his end? No one will save him from the rain of kunais and shurikens? Where is Jiraiya or Gaara?

Check it out…

* * *

**Chapter 18 – Revelations and Consequences**

**Beta: Kyuubi123**

* * *

The mass of kunai and shuriken pretty much covered the sun as each and every one of the projectiles had only one target.

The son of the Yondaime Hokage…a man who caused much grief to Iwa and its citizens would suffer just what every father, mother, husband, wife, son, daughter, brother, sister and lover felt upon knowing who was responsible for killing their loved ones. The Tsushikage promised revenge to his people, that he would be the one to carry out his people's vengeance, but until today, Onoki couldn't do anything in retaliation from fear of pissing off the strongest hidden village of all the elemental nations.

Konoha was prosperous to some, but dangerous to everyone who knew their darkest secrets.

Now, as the projectiles started their descent towards a still catatonic Naruto, a smirk was threatening to show on his face, at the consequences of killing the son of the man responsible for Iwa's downfall at the Last Shinobi Great War. Onoki could practically hear the sound of metal piercing flesh as the projectiles shadows already loomed over him and his immediate subordinate. Now, it seemed like nothing would go wrong and Iwa would finally have its revenge.

**Doton Doryuuheki **(Earth Release: Mud Wall Technique)

**Sabure Shouheki no Jutsu** (Sand Wall Technique)

Immediately and much to Onoki's surprise, two walls emerged in front of Naruto, just as the projectiles reached their mark. Behind the two walls, Jiraiya and Gaara looked at Naruto's catatonic face and frowned.

"Jiraiya-san, take Naruto out of here, I'll vanish soon afterwards." Gaara said, as his body disintegrated into sand, earning a nod from the sannin as he bit his thumb and made some hand signs. Slamming his hand on the ground, a huge column of smoke enveloped the stadium before Gamabunta appeared, much to the surprise of the Iwa shinobi and shock from the most experienced ones. Before the giant toad mouthed his protest at being summoned in the middle of his lunch, Jiraiya grabbed Naruto's body and jumped on top of Bunta's head.

"Bunta, take us out of here quick…I'll explain later." Jiraiya shouted, earning a nod from the toad as he jumped far away from the stadium and from the village.

Within a few jumps, Gamabunta was already in Fire Country territory as he left Jiraiya and Naruto close to a river. Naruto's face improved, but Jiraiya knew the boy probably wasn't even aware that his life was in danger, because of the information given by the Tsushikage. The Sannin knew Naruto would demand explanations soon, but for now, he would be left alone while processing the shocking news about his heritage. Jiraiya settled a camp for the two as he took care of some firewood and water.

Meanwhile, Naruto was in turmoil as he processed the information given to him and by the enemy no less!

He felt betrayed by those he came to love. Jiraiya, Tsunade and Kakashi most certainly knew about his father, but chose not to tell him….for what reason, though, he didn't know. Was it so important that they would have preferred his miserable state than letting him know who his parents were? Kyuubi was also awfully silent inside his head and Naruto learned it to be quite disturbing, especially considering that for a demon, the damn fur ball couldn't keep his damn mouth shut.

Putting his anger aside for a minute, Naruto pondered on his father for a while. Minato Namikaze was the Yondaime Hokage and greatest ninja in existence, but Naruto only heard bits and pieces of his life as a shinobi. He knew Minato to be the reason Konoha won the Third Great Ninja War because of his trademark techniques the Hiraishin and the Rasengan. Also, he was the man who saved Konoha from Kyuubi's rampage, by sealing it…inside…his son.

As Naruto finished his train of thought, an unconscious anger grew and he was having difficulty controlling himself. There were times when Naruto would curse the heavens for the pain and sadness he felt while growing up, but in the end he got over it and assumed the position of Jinchuuriki, but back then he wasn't aware what his old man did to him. He was furious with his father and he wanted nothing more than verbalize it to anyone he knew.

Unaware, though, of his surroundings, Naruto continued dwelling on the past and he grew to loathe his father even more.

He was, however, being watched by a team of six Iwa Jounin that followed Gamabunta's trail up to this point. The Tsushikage was adamant about having Naruto's head on a silver platter and he sent his elite squad to deal with the boy, while Jiraiya was occupied elsewhere. They all wore Anbu armor and white porcelain masks to hide their identity. It only took one order from the captain for everyone to charge against Naruto like a well-coordinated unit.

The man closest to Naruto unsheathed his kodashi in order to deliver the killing strike to Naruto's blind side.

The sound of metal clashing against metal echoed throughout the forest as Naruto managed to parry the strike with his sword. The blond was surprised at Iwa for going this far to kill him, but he wasn't interested in figuring out the reason. He was angry and he wanted to lash out at anyone, might as well use these goons as they attacked him first. Then, with a smile that would send shiver to everyone's spine, Naruto focused some of the Kyuubi's chakra, before gripping the hilt of his sword tighter.

The Tsushikage wanted his head, but instead he would receive six…

It didn't take ten minutes, before the fight was over.

A few minutes later, as Jiraiya appeared near the vicinity, he sensed the usage of demonic chakra and the sign of battle and rushed to Naruto's early position only to see Iwa shinobi sprawled on the ground almost entirely covered by their own blood. Their arms and legs were severed from the body and deep slashes on the neck region showed enough of what happened here. Walking a bit more, Jiraiya spotted Naruto as the blond looked down on the last piece of trash who dared attack him. Jiraiya could feel the cold animosity as Naruto's sword was covered with the blood of his opponents. However, it was when Naruto turned to meet Jiraiya that the Sannin felt it.

Fear. Naruto's eyes were shouting for blood and the smirk on his face proved that he'd enjoyed every second of what he'd done to these men. Whatever innocence Jiraiya sensed in him before was gone. Naruto became a killer, an assassin and for the first time since the Third Shinobi War, Jiraiya felt fear for his life. He wondered if every man that met Naruto's sword felt the same way.

And just when he thought Naruto would attack him, the blond settled to cleanse his sword of the enemy's blood, before returning it to its respective holster. He turned his back on Jiraiya and spoke.

"Let's go back to the village Jiraiya. It doesn't make sense being here when Iwa comes to investigate. But just to be safe, please step aside…" Naruto said with a bored voice as he made some hand seals.

**Katon Makai no Kaen (**Fire Release: Hell Blaze Technique)

Exhaling a thin layer of white fire, it enveloped all six of the dead Iwa shinobi, bursting them into flames. Jiraiya watched as the fire only increased once it came in contact with the pool of blood. It didn't take more than a minute before all six of them were transformed into ashes as Jiraiya did a low-level suiton jutsu to extinguish the flames so that the entire forest wouldn't suffer the same fate. However, Naruto paid little mind as he started walking towards the village. Jiraiya was by his side in an instant as he studied Naruto's behavior. For all he knew, those six meet Naruto's fury and he could see that the blond was more relaxed, even though he knew his ass was still on the line of fire.

"I've been wondering about something, before those idiots rudely interrupted…" Naruto said, calling Jiraiya's attention. "I'm not ignorant to the necessity of secrets in order to save lives and I certainly now understand why my position as the Yondaime's son wasn't revealed to the public." Jiraiya was quiet as he heard it from the blond. Naruto couldn't have understood Sarutobi Hiruzen's wishes that easily, surely something was wrong, but Naruto wasn't through.

"What I don't understand is while revealing the truth to the world would cause Iwa's anger, what was the reason behind keeping me out of the loop about my parents this entire time? Surely, an orphan kid would want nothing more than to know who his parents were. But, instead, everyone thought it was best to keep me from the truth. For what, though?"

"It was for your protection Naruto…" Jiraiya said, before he saw a smile coming from his face at the absurdity of such reason.

"Protect me?"

The blond smiled at the pervert's answer, although he found it to be the wrong answer. One wouldn't need to look further into his past to know that protection wasn't something he could count on. The trip back to the village was silent as Naruto pondered about what Jiraiya said regarding the reason why no one ever told him of his parents and that it wasn't Iwa whom Naruto needed protection from, but the very people that lived in Konoha.

* * *

**===In Konoha===**

The village gates suddenly appeared from within the thick forest that surrounded Konoha, before Naruto and Jiraiya walked inside the village. Jiraiya considered taking Naruto to the Hokage's office, where he would certainly receive his chunnin promotion. It was after all the condition for returning his missions as a hunter-nin. Jiraiya felt the blond deserved the rank of Jounin by his skills already and he would talk to Tsunade about it. However, right now there were more pressing manners to deal with, that being Iwa's open assault on a Konoha shinobi and the fact that Naruto just received the news of who his father was.

"Naruto, I will talk with the Hokage, okay?" Jiraiya said, before he saw Naruto vanishing within a small tornado.

The Sannin sighed as he continued on his path towards Tsunade's office. He feared that something bad was going to happen now that Naruto knew of his heritage and from the Tsushikage no less. Right now, as he calmly walked towards the Hokage's Tower, Jiraiya was considering the ramifications of what that damn fool of the Tsushikage just started. The six dead Anbu at the forest was proof enough of Naruto's skills both as a shinobi as well as an assassin.

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

Looking down at the village he grew up in, Naruto placed his hunter-nin mask on in order to avoid detection as he wallowed in misery.

Out of the blue, though, a presence was sensed, more like four but Naruto knew them as a grey husky started licking his hand. It was happy to see him and surprisingly so, Naruto was also happy to see the little fella as he also knew that one special person was there as well.

"She missed you like crazy Naruto-kun. When she sensed your scent, it didn't take one minute to arrive to your position." Hana said, with crossed arms as she saw her boyfriend caressing the dog's ears.

"So you're saying you didn't miss me then?"

To this Hana pouted and admitted she missed him as well, before joining him on the Yondaime Hokage's head. The view was incredible and the wind was caressing their features in a rather relaxing way. Though despite the mask, Hana sensed that something was wrong with her boyfriend. She knew this because he kept facing the village without even acknowledging his surroundings, indicating that something was on his mind.

"You got something you want to talk about Naruto? Even though I can't see your eyes, I can feel that something is wrong."

The question surprised Naruto greatly. Was he so predictable like this? Hana didn't need to see him to reach this conclusion. Suddenly a smile appeared beneath the mask as he turned to meet her gorgeous visage. The only thing he wanted right now was to sulk in his own misery for a while. He deserved that much, after years of focusing on what others believed. But right now, looking at those beautiful and peaceful eyes, he felt drawn to explain to her everything that happened.

"During the chunnin exams, Iwagakure turned on me. The Tsushikage attacked me just as I was declared the winner of the exams." Naruto said, surprising Hana for a moment, but Naruto wasn't finished. "The attack in itself wasn't what had me thinking, but rather the reason behind the open attack of a ninja from another village. According to the old dwarf, they attacked me because I happen to be the son of the Yondaime Hokage, Namikaze Minato."

The silence that soon followed was what Naruto had expected from such a revelation. Hana was looking at her boyfriend like he suddenly grew another head. No wonder, the man was the exact replica of the Yondaime. He was the man's son for goodness sake. She started wondering why no one knew about this piece of information or rather why no one thought of revealing it to the public. Most of all, she wondered why no one thought of revealing it to Naruto? Nonetheless, Hana figured that her boyfriend would be happy to know about his parents, so why the long face, she wondered. Turning to the man in question, she asked just that, before silence followed once more.

"Would you feel better knowing the truth not from the people you love and cherish, but from the enemy instead? Everyone…the Sandaime Hokage, Kakashi, Jiraiya, the Godaime…they all knew and no one said a thing to a little boy, who by the way worshipped the Yondaime Hokage as his biggest hero. I know Iwa detested him for what he did at the Third Shinobi War, but to keep it from me all this time. I even…I ended up doing something because of it…that right now I'm regretting like crazy."

Hana could relate to what Naruto was feeling. After all, the news about her father perishing was only informed when she passed the Chunnin Test and at the time, she knew by accident. No one told her about the real reason.

"What did you do?" Hana was worried about the last part. After all, the man was angry at the Sannin Jiraiya for not telling him about the Yondaime, maybe…

"After we managed to escape from Iwa's clutches, a team of Anbu followed us. They tried attacking me and I…I could have simply knocked them out and waited for Jiraiya to appear and deal with the situation properly. But I…I was so angry with everything and..."

"You killed them." It wasn't a question, but a statement and Naruto just nodded.

"They were skilled and they wanted me dead, but I could've dealt with them without killing them. I've let my emotions control my actions and with a bloodthirsty demon inside your belly, losing control is like releasing the seal that prevents Kyuubi from escaping." The Inuzuka Chunnin nodded like it was an understatement, but she was confused as to why Naruto was feeling this way. Was it because of his father or the fact that he lost control over his urges to kill?

* * *

**===At the Hokage's Office===**

Upon entering her office, Jiraiya started explaining everything that happened since he left with Naruto to the Chunnin Exams that took place in Iwa. Along the speech, Tsunade was reconsidering revoking Naruto's license as a shinobi if that meant the end of her troubles. She always figured that he was a handful, but this was getting ridiculous. Problem was now that he was aware of his parentage and that's not a good thing. What's worse is that she had one hell of a diplomatic issue to deal with.

"And that's about it, I'm afraid."

As he looked at the giant breasted lady in front of him, Jiraiya expected the woman to become insane after hearing what happened in Iwagakure. Hell he wouldn't blame her at all! Naruto had something in him that attracts trouble. However, she handled everything like their sensei Sarutobi would. With patience and a confident resolve to deal with the problem in hand like a true leader and Jiraiya was impressed, until the lady spoke.

"I'm afraid there's nothing we can do, but come clean with Naruto. Tell him everything and hope for the best."

"That is the only plan yes, but what about Iwa's move on a Konoha Shinobi? The villages all forged a pact of neutrality. Even if moved by past actions, no village can openly attack another."

"As if Naruto was trouble enough, now there's Iwa to worry about. That damn dwarf went too far attacking one of mine; problem now is what should I do with this mess? Attack them and a new ninja war is upon us, do nothing and Iwa would walk away free, without reparations." Tsunade was now feeling the burden of not being able to pass this decision to a superior. Of course, there was the alternative of discussion with the council. With Danzou dead, Tsunade didn't need to worry about his political ability to dissuade choices to his benefit anymore.

Deciding to take the pressure off for a while, Jiraiya opted to change the subject.

"So what about Sasuke? How are you handling him?"

Tsunade looked at the pervert for a moment, before she responded.

"Ibiki is keeping tabs with him from time to time. He's unresponsive most of the time, opting to close his eyes and meditate. I shared some words with him and it surprised me to see such indifference to living. I guess that with his vengeance fulfilled, he doesn't see any point in living. Nevertheless, we have yet to settle a suitable punishment for him. I've left his peers in charge with the proper penalty. Shikamaru and Shino are expected to hand it to me by tomorrow."

"Uchiha Itachi damaged that kid's mind in such a way that if Sasuke didn't focus solely on revenge, he would have gone nuts by now. So, he has no drive anymore"

Tsunade nodded, before sipping a bit of her tea and sighed in dismay at her current predicament. Only one action was clear at this point as she took one scroll from a secret compartment inside the Hokage's table and threw it to Jiraiya. The pervert, for his part, looked at the Hokage in surprise.

"It's high time we gave it to him, Jiraiya. He deserves to know the truth straight from the horse's mouth. Also, you can tell him about his promotion as well. After what happened, jounin is the least I could give him." Jiraiya nodded, before leaving the office, letting Tsunade alone as she looked through the office window at her ancestors and sensei. However, for some unidentified reason, her eyes focused on Minato's head instead of her sensei's or her grandfather. This problem had everything to do with Minato as he was the one to start this entire mess. Given the fact he alone pretty much wiped Iwa off the existence of the elemental nations, Iwa was now demanding retribution by going after the man's son. It was the same idiotic behavior followed by the villagers after the Kyuubi attacked. They blamed Naruto like he was responsible for everything just as Iwa wanted Naruto's head for something his father committed.

In her opinion, it was an idiotic issue of epic proportions and Tsunade was cursing that old man Tsushikage with a passion.

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

The sun was already on the verge of setting and the couple was starting to get hungry. After talking with Hana for god knows how long, the blond was feeling lighter, as if everything was back to normal once more, even though he still remembered the truth that he was the son of the famous Yondaime Hokage and he was informed by the man who wanted his head decapitated and served on a silver platter.

The dogs were up front as Naruto and Hana went down the Hokage Mountain, before heading straight to the Barbeque Place, every Inuzuka's favorite, according to Hana. Naruto actually enjoyed some fine meat every once in a while. Once inside, the couple took a nice table next to the set of windows as the waiter handed them the menus. Hana asked for some meat for her huskies, as well as a nice t-bone steak for her covered with barbeque sauce, while Naruto settled for a well-sized sirloin steak served with some french fries. Naruto wasn't in the mood to hide his face from the public as he released his mask, surprising Hana for a bit. However, she didn't bother to ask about it. Her boyfriend was facing a tough trial right now with knowing about his family after all this time and it wasn't her place to get in the middle of it.

She just hoped, though, that he would open up more to her about it.

Actually he opened up a bit once they were at the Monument, but now that he released the mask, he lost the focus in his eyes once more. The place was getting crowded by the minute and Hana wondered what would happen if any one of Naruto's peers saw him without the mask. The blond worked hard to cover his identity and Hana would be damned if she would let such a situation ruin everything her boyfriend worked very hard for. With a little genjutsu, Hana was able to place the mask back on his face and no one could see the real face of the Hunter-Fox.

The dinner was delicious and soon Naruto and Hana left the restaurant, before heading straight to Naruto's apartment. Once the door was closed, Hana dispelled the illusion on Naruto's face as she saw him looking at the moon outside, glowing with all its majesty. She could feel every bit of his misery and her heart was aching in pain from seeing him like this. She had to do something. Without even thinking, she hugged Naruto from behind.

"Naruto, please talk to me…"

"Hana-chan, I'm sorry…but…" Naruto tried convincing her, but Hana was obstinate and wouldn't give in.

"You can trust me to open up my dear. You're the love of my life, you're special to me. I want you to trust me please…"

Naruto turned and looked at Hana as tears escaped from her eyes, she was crying for both of them.

No matter what happened in his life, nothing…absolutely nothing was sadder than seeing his girlfriend cry and as he approached to wipe the tears of her face, he realized that she was crying because of him. Hana felt Naruto's hands on her face and looked up to see his eyes looking at her with utmost intensity. It wasn't the usual lifeless eyes of someone who has given up in life, it was the opposite. Two ocean deep blue orbs looking at her with passion, honesty and above all love. She felt warmth within her heart, she felt confident that she could save this man from his worst enemy…himself.

Now, as the couple stood inches away from each other, both approached the other pretty much simultaneously, before their lips met. Hana instantly felt a tingling sensation in her stomach as she could feel the warm energy coming from her boyfriend while sharing a deep and loving kiss. It didn't take long before their hands started massaging the other's body slowly and tenderly. Hana, then, opened Naruto's leather jacket zipper, before taking it off while maintaining the kiss. Naruto, for his part, didn't waste time and took his girlfriend's chunnin vest off.

As they stopped kissing, each looked into the other's eyes as the next events were pretty much certain for both of them. They kissed once more as Naruto started leading the Inuzuka chunnin to his Queen-Sized bed. Hana smiled at her boyfriend as her hands slowly admired Naruto's firm arm muscles while her hormones started influencing her judgment and she was enjoying every minute in great anticipation for what she knew would come. She hoped to save Naruto from his misery and from what she saw on his eyes, it proved that he trusted her and he wanted her to be there for him.

She wouldn't deny any of that as Naruto laid her on his bed, before getting on top of her, while never breaking the fierce and passionate kiss.

It felt like a promising start to both of them as their hormones took over.

**

* * *

****===Unknown Location===**

After maybe the best sex ever, Naruto was somehow alleviated. His situation didn't change much; he still searched for answers as to why no one ever told him about his father and his mother. However, there was still another issue on his mind.

Hana feel asleep soon after the love making and Naruto would have as well, but he had to visit someone. Naruto needed to know about Sasuke's final destination and only one man knew more than him about missing-nins and that was the Hunter-nin Commander. Sasuke was considered an 'A' ranked missing-nin, but a special one. Naruto could've killed the insolent traitor with a single kunai. He was unconscious next to his dead brother, but Sasuke had to be captured instead of killed, much to Naruto's displeasure at the man's blatant favoritism.

However, now that he was captured, Naruto didn't know what Konoha would do to him and quite frankly, he wanted to know what would happen to the Uchiha. He didn't care if Konoha voted for his death or for him to give the village many babies with Sharingan. By slicing the criminal's throats, Naruto felt certain that they were dealt with for good, but never before had Naruto had to capture a missing-nin and he was curious about what Sasuke's punishment would be.

Going through a false wall located in an abandoned building, Naruto went down the long set of stairs, until he reached the hidden Hunter-nin base. This time, Kira wasn't there and Naruto assumed the woman was either hanging out with Anko or doing her shift at the Hospital. The floor looked like it was abandoned as Naruto couldn't sense anyone there, except the very man he wished to talk to. Uzuki Gaeshi was a feared shinobi for his skills in assassination, but for the man to survive down here without anyone to accompany him, was staggering to Naruto. It felt like a place of solitude, just like being alone out there, hunting criminals.

Suddenly, a door pushed open and Gaeshi exited the room, before landing his eyes at the newcomer.

"Ah my favorite hunter-nin, come in my office Naruto. What can I do for you?"

Naruto nodded and approached Gaeshi's office, before hearing the door being shut.

He immediately took a seat in front of the cold metal table and waited for his commander to sit in front of him, before he began.

"Sir, I was hoping you could fill me in regarding a certain captured missing-nin…A-ranked."

"Uchiha Sasuke, I presume…" Naruto was surprised since he had yet to say the name of the criminal, but then he figured no A-ranked missing-nin would be captured, only killed. Sasuke's situation was the exception. Also, the fact that Gaeshi's usually normal tone reduced to a more somber one because of it, meant that he wasn't comfortable with such leniency as much as Naruto was right now.

"I was trained to eliminate those who conspire against Konoha's well being and as such, Uchiha Sasuke is considered, to me at least, the worst of the A-ranked list. I was merely curious to know what Tsunade-sama plans to do with him, considering his criminal record." Gaeshi smiled at the blond hunter-nin, before getting up and opening a filing cabinet. All information regarding Konoha's missing-nins were inside this cabinet and certainly Sasuke was as well.

As he picked Sasuke's file, he looked at the last page, before looking at Naruto.

"According to this file, Sasuke's fate will be decided by the very ones in his graduating class. Two of them were nominated as leaders who will relay the information to Tsunade tomorrow. I believe you know the names Nara Shikamaru and Aburame Shino. If you want to know about his fate, talk to these two and get a feel of them. Who knows, maybe, you could _persuade_ them to kill the bastard and be done with it. I know you feel the same way I do when criminal's leniency is concerned. Just remember to pass by for a visit and tell me about it, will ya?"

"Don't worry, if it was up to me, Sasuke would meet his end like every criminal should…"

* * *

**===With Shino===**

Aburame Shino was considered the elite amongst his clan for what he was able to accomplish at his age. He was the leader of his genin team, the one whom Kiba and Hinata could count on with their lives and even Kurenai, the jounin-sensei at the time, was saved by Shino's bugs on a great number of occasions. Becoming a chunnin didn't take long as he would've become one on the first try, if his opponent hadn't bail out of the fight. From there, his skills both family and shinobi wise spiked the organization Anbu's curiosity with the possibility of drafting the kid to their forces. After he was promoted to jounin, Shino received the invitation and accepted.

Now, as an Anbu captain, Shino had his own team to lead which by the way was responsible for a great many accomplishments as well.

Right now, the man was leaving the Anbu HQ in hopes of getting some sleep after a rather tiring mission near Taki's borders. However as he walked along the empty paths of Konoha, Shino couldn't help but feel the presence of someone tailing him from afar. Whoever this person was, Shino was impressed by the level of stealth presented. From him and his kikaichuu to not notice until now was astonishing and the Aburame felt like congratulating the man or woman. Suddenly, making a right turn inside a dark alley, he was greeted with his follower. Everything in the man before him inspired confidence and Shino could tell there was a man with a lot of experience in front of him.

"Long time no see, Shino?"

The voice was stronger that he remembered, but his bugs couldn't be fooled that easily.

"Indeed, it is Naruto. Why were you following me?" Shino couldn't see much because it was night time, but he could've sworn that Naruto gave a smirk at his question.

"I just don't like to walk around Konoha, that's all. People would know I'm here and I don't want to give them the satisfaction of glaring hatefully at me. Now, I was meaning to discuss something with you if I may? I was wondering about Sasuke's whereabouts and I was hoping you could tell me something about him?"

"What makes you think I know anything about that guy…"

Shino was normally controlled and rather stoic in some occasions and up to now, Naruto figured there was nothing that would ever get a rise out of the stoic Aburame Shino, but apparently just the mention of Sasuke's name was enough to change Shino's behavior.

"I'm not the smartest person around, but I very well know that as Anbu captain, there isn't much you do not know. Plus, as a future clan heir, I trust your father is relating important secrets of the village to you, day by day. Now, I was the one that captured Sasuke and I was wondering why he isn't dead yet, considering he was an A-ranked missing-nin and in my book, a person of such a reputation doesn't deserve to live." The passion in which Naruto speaks about this sort of thing was staggering as Shino knew about his reputation outside Konoha's walls, but he wasn't finish talking. "I know you as well as the others are deciding on Sasuke's punishment and I want to know how it's going?"

Naruto considered the information given by Gaeshi to be confidential. He imagined that this decision of sorts would at least be an A-ranked secret and no one below Jounin should know.

"I guess discussing it with you won't harm anyone…after all, you're a part of our group, even if no one, save Kiba, ever sees you anymore." Shino's comment merely caused Naruto to smirk, but Shino couldn't see it. "Indeed, Sasuke's fate will be decided by our group. However, as it stands, there are two possible outcomes…."

"Live or die…to me this decision doesn't require more than ten seconds, considering his record. And these ten seconds are in reference to the method of killing. Okay, if I were to guess, you, Shikamaru, Kiba and Neji are in favor of his death, while Hinata, Sakura, Ino and Tenten are in favor of letting him live with a lighter penalty. Am I close?" Shino's sudden silence gave him the answer.

"Chouji would be the one to end the tie, but he chose to withdraw from the decision. That leaves eight votes and so far it's four in favor of his death and four against it."

"Perhaps, I could act in Chouji's stead; after all I'm on the same class as you guys"

Such a comment surprised Shino as he tried to assess what Naruto's vote would be. Close to four years ago, there were only two people that protected Sasuke's reputation and one of them was Sakura. Naruto was the other. However, back then Naruto was a stupid genin, all but focused on believing in second chances. Right now, he was responsible for killing missing-nins. It was his job. So maybe, he would vote for Sasuke's death. The Aburame remembered Sakura saying that if Naruto were to vote, he would clearly vote to save Sasuke, but Naruto changed so much, Shino guessed that no one even knew who he was anymore.

"For some reason or another, I wouldn't know which side you'd be on." Shino said, surprising Naruto. "Four years ago, you'd protect him even if he killed everyone in Konoha. Now, you kill people based on crimes listed in the bingo book" Now, Naruto felt insulted both personally and professionally.

"Okay man, let me tell you something. When I captured Sasuke, my hand was itching to grab any slicing object and end his misery. Now, if I did that, I would be violating the code of the Hunter-nin, which states that under no circumstances must I overrule the bingo book. So, if the bingo book says capture him, I obey. Now, if this didn't answer your question, I'm not sure anything will. However, if my vote counted for something, you'd already consider it. My best guess is that someone voted me out from fear that I would interfere somehow. Probably Shikamaru, he is the smartest one from our class after all."

By now Shino was confident that the person before him was _not _the Naruto he knew. He'd already met the hunter-nin before, but not under these circumstances.

"I have a feeling that wasn't a question, but a statement. Indeed, he voted you out and no one argued against it. Not even Sakura, no matter how much she repented after hearing our side of the story."

"I see…well there isn't much I can do then, other than wish good luck to your side. Now I wonder what will happen to him, considering you guys can't decide. Perhaps, the Hokage will decide the final outcome. Anyway, I have places to be right now. Take care Shino…" With that, Naruto left and Shino returned to his path towards his compound for a well deserved rest. He didn't want to know what Naruto's next item of the agenda was.

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

After a few jumps, Naruto was in a place he never expected to be.

His sensei Kakashi used to come here all the time, but the blond never bothered knowing about this specific stone. Upon looking at it, he could see a lot of names…names from ninjas who lost their lives in the line of duty. He, then, saw his father's name listed there with bigger words than the other names, as expected based on his position as Hokage. Immediately Naruto remembered what happened in Iwagakure and squeezed his fists in downright fury.

Naruto was still pissed about hearing of his father and the fact that no one bothered to tell him about it all this time. But overall, he was wondering about his old man and the life he had as the Yondaime Hokage. What challenges he had? What tribulations he faced to become Hokage? Above all, why he used his own son to seal the Kyuubi inside? All these questions now replaced his anger to morbid curiosity.

"I somehow figured you'd be here, Naruto." Naruto heard the familiar voice and turned his neck barely to register his sensei Kakashi. He knew Kakashi was aware of who his father was. But in all fairness, physically attacking the man wouldn't do any good. But this didn't mean he couldn't complain…

"I always wondered why you came here all the time sensei." Naruto said, as Kakashi approached his position. "Is it because you miss your loved ones who perished in battle…or you feel guilty for keeping me from the truth all those years?" His tone was calm, but to Kakashi it felt like a ton of bricks right in his face. Kakashi talked to Jiraiya about what happened and he knew Naruto might want to _discuss_ it with him. That's why the man was fully dressed in his jounin attire, equipped with all his gear as well as his new sword. He came prepared in case Naruto wanted to become physical, but that never happened and Kakashi was surprised and a little bit afraid of what might happen.

"You got the guilty part right Naruto, but not the real reason behind it. But this is irrelevant to your current predicament. Yes, I know who your father was, as he was my team's sensei. He was like a father to me and he helped me get through everything that happened to my life."

"Then why?" Kakashi looked at Naruto, before sighing in dismay while looking at Minato's name written on the stone.

"Why no one told you about it? Minato-sensei's name, as you know, is severely frowned upon in Iwagakure. If they knew you're his son at the beginning, it wouldn't take long for them to declare your head for everything your father did. Sandaime-sama considered…"

"I'm not talking about Iwagakure, Kakashi…I'm talking about me. Why wasn't _I _informed of my parents? Growing up alone, with no knowledge from them, no memory to hold onto while growing up…I understood why my position as the Yondaime's son wasn't revealed to the public, but what I don't understand is why the information was kept from _me_. Please help me understand sensei? Give me one reason why no one ever told me about my father"

Kakashi could see Naruto's arm muscles trembling as anger was taking control and that wasn't a good thing, especially when the Kyuubi is involved.

"I know you're angry and I know you're demanding answers, but no one can answer them…except your own father." Naruto was immediately shocked at Kakashi's answer, before Jiraiya appeared and handled Naruto the scroll that, hopefully would answer all of Naruto's questions. The blond was taken aback by Jiraiya's presence all of a sudden, but took the scroll nonetheless and calmly unstrapped the lace around the parchment, before reading its content.

* * *

_Hello Naruto,_

_When you read this, I hope you are already a jounin in terms of experience and skill. _

_In a few moments, the Kyuubi no Yoko is going to attack Konoha and it's my duty to protect the village at all costs. I have developed a specific technique that will deal with the damn fox once and for all. However, the price for this technique is something no father would or should ever bear in his conscience. As you're now aware of the fox inside you, you know what I'm talking about. Also, you should know that I couldn't ask anyone to give me their son or daughter for this. I know I wouldn't think twice before denying the request. Know this my son…you are a hero to the village and don't you dare ever think otherwise. No matter what people say, you're the hero that will keep the fox at bay. I know your life won't be easy because of this and for that, I'm sorry as well. You'll face hardships no child should suffer while growing up. _

_However, I'm certain you will overcome them as you happen to share my blood and I know the word 'giving up' doesn't appear in our vocabulary. _

_Furthermore, because of who I am, I asked Sarutobi-sama not to reveal your heritage until you could properly defend yourself against my enemies. Iwa shinobi are vicious individuals and they won't stop until they received retribution for what happened at the last shinobi war. And because of this, I felt it was better to keep you away from the truth until you're powerful enough to defend yourself against them, so please don't be mad with him or anyone confided by him for keeping this from you for so long…I accounted the possibility of you being angry with me, but considering the circumstances Konoha and our family is facing, I just couldn't take the chance. Your mother Uzumaki Kushina perished as a victim of a terrible disease and this technique of mine will certainly kill me as well. I hope old Sarutobi has taken good care of you in my and your mother's stead and it's our wish that you become a strong ninja and true wielder of the will of fire. _

_As I hear the fox's paws scratching our walls, I know my time is getting thin, but I wanted to leave you this letter Naruto in order to hopefully answer all of your questions. Last, as you'll see the kanji written below this letter, it's a containment seal. Inside is another scroll with the coordinates for my house. It isn't like a mansion or anything like the Uchiha or the Hyuuga, but what's important is what's inside. I have collected a very extensive library of jutsus and it's my inheritance to you my son. Also, you will have access to two of my strongest jutsus, the Rasengan and the Hiraishin. _

_Become a proud shinobi Naruto and always know that both I and your mother love you very much and will watch over you from the skies above._

_With love _

_Yondaime Hokage…Namikaze Minato…Father of the Great Naruto Uzumaki._

* * *

Jiraiya and Kakashi stood still while Naruto was reading the letter. They heard him whisper the name of his mother with great sadness as the memory soon hit them as well. Kushina's demise was unfortunate and it resulted in Naruto being an orphan, without anyone to look after him. Suddenly, the blond started facing the two and they feared Naruto wouldn't take Minato's words to heart. However, Kakashi could see sadness in Naruto's eyes as tears suddenly fell from both his eyes.

However, Naruto had enough pride not to cry in front of these two, so he simply vanished, letting Jiraiya and Kakashi looking at the location the blond was before.

"You think he'll be okay?" Kakashi asked, before seeing Jiraiya sigh in dismay.

"I don't know…he's a mystery to solve. And he didn't even let me tell him about his jounin promotion, oh well…"

* * *

**===At the Hokage's Office===**

At this time at night, everyone was asleep except for the Hokage, the Anbu and a few shinobis, either located in bars or sulking somewhere else. Tsunade actually enjoyed these quiet moments as no one would bother her. Next to her, was a bottle of sake, one of the best coming from Lightning country. The warm liquid always calmed her nerves, allowing her some relaxing times. However, it was hard to have some time alone now because of her position. One of the chunnin responsible for delivering messages from other villages, just came barging in her office, ruining her alone time.

"Tsunade-sama, an urgent message from Kumogakure…" Tsunade was surprised by this, before snatching the scroll from the chunnin.

Quickly unrolling the message scroll, Tsunade went through the rather long message written by the Yondaime Raikage. It didn't take much longer for her eyes to widen in surprise and shock at the news presented before her. Throwing her chair back with force, Tsunade got up and started screaming orders for the stationed Anbu team hidden in her office.

"Anbu, bring me Jiraiya, Naruto and Kakashi right now. I don't care if they're busy; I want them here right now!"

The eagle masked Anbu appeared out of nowhere and vanished soon after in order to carry out the Hokage's request, leaving the woman once more alone inside her office to wonder about the sudden turn of events. Apparently, Akatsuki just captured the Hachibi Jinchuuriki and the Raikage was demanding a meeting between the five Kages to decide their intentions against the organization. Right now, the organization has eight of the nine bijuus and Naruto, now, was the last one remaining.

* * *

**Author Note**

Okay, I'll stop the chapter right here.

Will Naruto get through his internal grief? What will he find in Minato's library and what new techniques will be learned? Also, the Kage Summit is under way and Tsunade must attend, but who are the two shinobis that will follow her? Stay tuned for the next chapter.

See ya.


	19. Internal Grief

**Author Note**

Hello there and welcome to another chapter of my hunter-nin story.

As some of you might guess, this story was the poll's victor, hence why I'll be focusing more of my time on it, instead of the others. However, that doesn't mean I'll completely abandon the other stories. I can say for sure that I'll be updating three chapters of this story, before moving on to the Lone Wolf story epilogue. Now, as the poll is now closed, I'll reveal the final results. As you'll see below, the path of the hunter-nin was the winner, followed closely by the Full Moon.

**The path of the hunter-nin – 79 votes (27%)**

Full Moon – 68 votes (25%)

Regret – 46 votes (17%)

Cursed Eyes – 33 votes (12%)

Meshii – 25 votes (9%)

After the Storm – 18 votes (6%)

Total votes – 263 (100%)

On a personal note, I was surprised that very few voted on my Naru x Hina story. I believed it would be one of the most voted, but to my surprise, was the last. Either the story sucks or the NaruHina fans out there didn't get a chance to look at my poll. Also, I would like to extend my apologies to my friends Kingkakashi and Kyuubi123 for not focusing so much on the story. However, like I said, I won't abandon the story. It will just take longer to update, that's all.

Now, here comes the next chapter.

* * *

**Chapter 19 – Internal Grief**

**Beta: Kyuubi123**

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* * *

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Senju Tsunade was regarded by her Anbu guards as a rather calm Hokage, most of the time. However, all of them knew that when the woman was angry with something or someone, her mood pretty much transformed. The team that was responsible for guarding her office knew the reason was justified, though. Hell, it wouldn't be a surprise to them if the woman gathered a considerable ninja force and march straight towards the hidden village of earth and demand the head of the Tsushikage for openly attacking a ninja of the Leaf in the middle of the Chunnin Exams, in complete disregard to the pact of neutrality signed by the five hidden nations after the end of the Second Great Shinobi War.

However, they also knew that with the meeting of the five kages on the way, Tsunade just couldn't afford to base her actions on revenge. Now, as the ninjas she requested were already inside her office, the Anbu team settled to hide within the shadows as they returned to the duty of protecting the Hokage against outside threats that may manifest, while the woman was overseeing the village's choice of action.

"I suppose all of you know why you're here, so let's cut to the chase"

Tsunade's look was one of pure calm on the outside, but everyone in the room knew that if someone even bothered to piss her off for good, they wouldn't get to live much longer. In all fairness, though, the situation called for it, in Naruto's opinion. The Hunter ninja wasn't that interested in politics, seeing as he preferred a much more…direct approach than discussing rules and negotiations breach. However, when an enemy village decides to openly attack a ninja of the leaf with blatant disregard for the possibility of open war, Naruto was smart enough to realize the midget Tsushikage's devious plan. Aside from the possible elimination of the one closest to Iwa's most hated enemy, it served as an open statement of war to Konoha.

The thing was…if the council knew about the incident, Tsunade wouldn't be able to do a thing against their wishes to retaliate.

"Kakashi you weren't there, but I trust Jiraiya already briefed you, didn't he?" The woman didn't need to hear a response as she continued. "For a long time, Iwa stood their ground, doing nothing to disrespect the pact of neutrality. Now, though, their act against Naruto's life constitutes a clear breach, which only leads to one possible situation, one which I am not considering at this point wouldn't you agree Jiraiya…"

The perverted sannin nodded and smiled at his teammate for thinking ahead.

"Indeed, that old coot planned this perfectly. Attacking Naruto served two purposes. The first reason is kind of obvious at this point…" Jiraiya turned to the masked hunter-nin as he secretly processed what the blond was thinking right now. "The other was to goad us into a new War, possibly killing thousands if not more. The man was desperate, though, I can tell. In us thinking like this, we have the political advantage, which can be used at the Kage Summit later on. Onoki is counting for you to openly attack him or either declares war against Iwa. He certainly won't expect a demanding on our part, regarding compensations"

This time Kakashi took the microphone as he added his two cents to the conversation.

"…And the Tsushikage wouldn't be able to say no, considering that he would have all the other kages as witnesses to his open statement of war. Of course, he will do everything to goad you, Tsunade-sama. He will use Naruto's image as motive for his actions, saying it was merely retribution for everything the Yondaime Hokage did to them. I bet he'll even crack a smile, only to goad you more" Tsunade nodded at Kakashi and Jiraiya's insight, before turning to the only person who hadn't spoken a word so far. If this was the normal Naruto, she would have considered this a blessing.

However, he was different now…and that was dangerous by itself. She could only shiver at what the boy could possibly be thinking right now.

"What are you thinking, Naruto? I know from Jiraiya that he didn't have the time to tell you about the promotion to Jounin, meaning you're once again authorized for the hunter-nin job. I just want to know your position in all of this? Besides attacking Konoha, they attacked you. So that grants you the right for revenge against them, which will be justified" The look on Jiraiya and Kakashi's faces clearly indicated their shock at the Hokage's words. How could she play with such a situation, considering who's inside the blond's stomach? Naruto could very well storm outside this office and cause havoc in all of Iwa while using the fox's chakra.

The blond, however, only stared at the Hokage. He was wondering why the hell Tsunade was asking about his opinion on the manner. His job only involved killing missing ninjas.

"To tell the truth, I care very little for revenge. If Konoha, that means you Tsunade-sama, felt angered by the Tsushikage's attack on me, than by all means, do as you see fit. Also, seeing as you hereby granted me the jounin position, I can return out there and hunt the bastards who raised a finger against their home village and bring them to justice. Guys like Uchiha Sasuke that, even though he openly betrayed the village, is still among the living for reasons I don't yet know. I trust that my being here affects very little the decision you are about to make, regarding Iwa. That being said, there's no reason for me to remain"

After Naruto closed his mouth, dead silence reached the room. Even the secretive Anbu hidden in the shadows stopped their focus on the Hokage and looked at the distinguished Hunter-nin, who above all of the people in the room, knew the path he chose for himself. The blond, for his chance, didn't wait for a response and vanished from the room.

However, if he stayed longer, he would have seen a single tear that escaped from the Hokage's eyes.

Whatever happened to Naruto out there, she didn't like it one bit. His heart was still bound to protect the villagers, however the boy only believed in killing now. He lacked that sweetness and broad smile that would brighten up everyone's day regardless of what happened. The Hokage in her right mind couldn't blame anyone but herself for ever allowing Naruto to become a hunter-nin, but the mother side always pointed the finger on a third person and that was right now the man called Uzuki Gaeshi, the fucking hunter-nin commander who turned Naruto into a killer, an assassin.

The rain started pouring heavily outside the Hokage's window as lightnings illuminated the raven skies with dread. Uzumaki Naruto, the Uzumaki Naruto, was officially dead.

Steeling her resolve, seeing as nothing could be done for the blond now, Tsunade changed the issue at hand and started discussing about the Kage Summit.

"Kakashi, please gather Gai for a mission tomorrow morning. You two will be accompanying me at the Kage Summit. You, Jiraiya, will be appointed for Hokage in my stead. Normally, I'd ask Shikaku to fill in, but he's busy at the moment. While I'm gone, it will be required of you to watch out for those old fools Homura and Koharu. Everything else will be handled by Shizune, dismissed…"

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

Soon after leaving the Hokage's office, Naruto just stood outside in the rain as he looked at the village from the top of the Hokage Building. Naruto didn't regret what he'd said, as everything wasn't far from the truth of what he wanted. Silently grabbing the scroll written by his father, Naruto started wondering about maybe getting to know what his father left for him. Still, it somehow saddened Naruto that the scroll contents wasn't all that clarifying. What his father told him was pretty much the same thing everyone said and this fact pissed him off to no end.

He just hoped that whatever he found at his family's place would be able to atone for sealing the most powerful bijuu in existence inside his own son.

Taking another look at the scroll's contents, Naruto memorized the location of his father's house, before placing it inside more, inside one of his jacket pocket. The Yondaime Hokage's house was located in a secluded area just behind the Hokage Monument. It was strange, though, he reasoned. Ever since he was an infant, he remembered going to that place and not once did he see any form of construction whatsoever. As the strong rain bombarded the village of Konohagakure, only one person wasn't bothered by it as he jumped the rooftops towards the gigantic monument of the Five Hokages' faces.

It didn't take long before he was at the top of the hill, as he looked at the village below.

For a moment, there, he stood with nothing on his mind. It was amazing how this place alone could cause him to relax, despite everything that happened in his life. He almost wondered if it somehow resembled a home to him. Which, come to think about it, might as well be his actual home if the circumstances of his past were different and his parents were still alive. The blond couldn't help but imagine what would be like…

"**Oh man I'm going to hurl right here…it's imminent. Stop whining over the spilled milk brat. Now, besides the fact that they were your family, the Yondaime Hokage must have great knowledge of the ninja arts stored inside the house. What do you say we find where the house is hidden and check what he left for you?"** The fact that Kyuubi himself was perhaps the cause of Naruto's misery made the blond snort at his fox companion's comment. However, strangely enough, Naruto actually felt relieved to have someone always there for him to talk to and everything, even when Naruto was out there hunting missing-ninjas.

'_Sure, fur ball. Though, from what I know of my father, his techniques were more related to fuuinjutsu, except for those which I already mastered. I don't believe we will find anything useful inside the house'_

"**Those books can say what they want…only those who ever fought against him, know of his skills, his true skills. The Yondaime Hokage had mastery over two elements, besides being one of the best fuuinjutsu specialists I have ever seen. He had mastery over fire (Katon) and lightning (Raiton). Trust me, the man had a nice repertoire of techniques and as Hokage, he had access to many jutsus from other hidden nations. I wouldn't be surprised if he managed to assemble a private library inside his house…"**

The fox had a point, Naruto reasoned. However, before he could think of what to do inside the house, Naruto was focusing on actually finding the damn building. Looking around the dark mountain, the blond sighed as his eyes scanned through every possible location that someone would be able to build a house. Also, because of the heavy rain, it was hard to focus, even upon channeling some chakra to his eye sockets.

"**It's just a hunch of mine…but if I was the man and I was worried that someone would try and break inside my house, I'd find a way to either secure it or hide its location. Now, as you've probably realized by now, there are techniques out there that could very well make a building disappear. I trust that, knowing your father and knowing in what he specialized in, you are able to figure it out"** The hint was pretty obvious and the fox actually knew what the blond Hokage did, but he wanted the blond to realize it.

_Fuuinjutsu…he hid the house using seals, didn't he? But, how can I locate them?_

"**Normally, when securing a house, one must create a type of chakra perimeter, using four seals around the property. I'll help you in finding them, even though I half wished to see you doing it yourself. It's much more fun hearing you bitch about something…"**

Naruto snorted at his life time companion, but otherwise nodded in appreciation.

Taking advantage of Naruto's eyes, the fox used his skills and experience in order to locate the seals' location. Actually, because they were on top of the mountain, there weren't many plain fields to look and Minato wouldn't be crazy enough to build a house that could very much fall under the force of nature. However, this damn task was taking too damn long and quite frankly, the old hatred for the Yondaime was returning full force. When the fox was about to give up and tell Naruto that he was on his own, his eyes spotted a glimpse of a small sheet of paper hidden behind some bushes a few meters northwest from the blond's position.

Instantly reaching the seal, Naruto passed his hand on it for a while, before suddenly the black ink started glowing.

"**Interesting…it appears the Yondaime managed to create a specific seal array that only responds to his and your touch. It's quite obvious that I hate the man's guts, but I can't help but respect him even more now. It appears that the other seals are glowing as well…look" **

In instants, the empty terrain was replaced by a nice yet rather simple country house with two floors and a garden that was now being bombarded by the heavy rain. Cautiously, Naruto placed his right foot inside the house's perimeter.

After realizing it was safe, the blond fully entered the perimeter. He was surprised to see the seals glowing once more, but nothing happened after that.

_I see now…father didn't just hide his home for me to find; he did it to protect him and mom a long time ago, in case his enemies ever managed to find this location. _

Seeing that his position was safe, Naruto walked towards the front door and studied for a while. He was curious about his father's over protective and slight paranoid way of thinking. Instead of the usual door handle, the blond could see the same seal design in its place. No doubt, this was his backup plan in case the enemy ever managed to activate the seals around the property. Instantly touching the seal, it started to glow, before Naruto heard the distinct sound of the door lock. He didn't have to push the door open, though as he laid eyes with the house stairs that lead to the second floor.

As soon as he set foot inside the house, he managed to see the empty living room.

Immediately, a whole array of images flooded his brain of his father having fun in the middle of the living room, while watching a baby Naruto playing with his toys. Another image soon followed of Jiraiya entering the house, with a new gift and the baby Naruto jumping in joy at the old man's presence. Once he found the light switch, the blond was surprised at the sudden warm feeling inside his heart, as if he actually found something he'd been looking for his entire life. He laid eyes on a couple portraits on top of a wooden table located in the middle of the living room. Upon taking one, he saw his father there with a gorgeous red head woman. Her hair extended down her waist and she had a smile that was enticing. It took a moment, but Naruto was able to see the pregnant belly and stopped breathing, all of a sudden.

_Mom…_

…_she looked so happy in this picture. _

A smile soon appeared on his face as he now knew who his parents were. Ever since Naruto was an infant, all he wanted was to know about his parents. He didn't wish a public announcement or anything…he just wanted to know who they were and if possible, see a picture or two. He wished someone would share a story or two about them, but he wasn't sure if anyone was even willing to do that. _I guess I'll take what I can get at this point…_He reasoned as he placed the portrait back on the house was deadly silence, only filled by the heavy rain noise outside.

After half an hour of walking around, Naruto appeared satisfied as he returned to the living room. So far, though, Naruto couldn't see anything that resembled a library or even a single book or scroll hanging around. The blond knew that his father would have created some sort of secret passage, considering the level of security he used to hide this house. He started looking around the living room, channeling more chakra to his eyes, in order to further improve his sight and maybe find the damn seal.

However, that idea went out of the window, soon afterwards. He, then, started to pass his hand on the wall, hoping to somehow trigger the hidden seal, but again to no avail. Naruto was getting frustrated by the minute and wondered why the man was so paranoid like this, even inside his own house. As he passed through the wall closest to the kitchen door, though, he noticed that he could somehow feel the seal tag with his hands, even if he couldn't see it.

_If fuuinjutsu wasn't enough, tou-san even casted a damn genjutsu to hide the seal array..._

It took a simple flare of Naruto's chakra for the real wall to appear before his eyes. The seal array was right in front of him as he touched the seal just like he did with the other ones so far. A grin appeared behind the mask as he heard the peculiar sound of a door opening, before a secret passage opened. The blond could see a huge set of stairs illuminated by candles on both walls. At first, Naruto wondered if given the level of security so far used by his father, if the man created a trap of some kind for the enemy that managed to reach this far. Looking at the walls, Naruto was able to see transparent wires on top of the tenth step. Throwing a single shuriken, Naruto sliced the wire, before the show started.

A great number of torrents materialized from the walls and would've burned every single enemy that would be stupid enough to walk down the stairs, without worrying about the hidden trap.

The fire lasted about two minutes, before the blond started walking down the stairs. After about five minutes, Naruto finally reached a place that resembled a library. However, Naruto was astonished at the amount of knowledge gathered by his father and, possibly, his mother. From what he could see, the shelves were organized in terms of ninja arts, going from taijutsu styles to genjutsu, then all five types of elemental ninjutsu. Naruto could see one section with the word fuuinjutsu and he wondered how much he would have to study in order to fully grasp his father's most prized technique, the Hiraishin. It was simply a gold mine for any shinobi or kunoichi and the blond understood the importance of keeping the house invisible to everyone outside his family.

Naruto wouldn't be surprised if such security was meant for some Konoha shinobi as well. No doubt, people like Danzou, would be thrilled to spend at least a week analyzing the fourth's knowledge if he wasn't dead that is.

Getting through the skills he knew best first, the hunter ninja went to the ninjutsu section. Right now, Naruto had knowledge of three elements, those being Earth (doton), Wind (Fuuton) and Fire (Katon). He figured that it would be a waste of time checking for earth techniques, seeing as the techniques he used were more for defense in this department. Wind techniques weren't his topic of mind right now, considering that he already had a nice repertoire of both offensive and defensive techniques. His target, though, was fire techniques. According to the fox, his father had both lightning and fire affinities, hence why the man must have some very powerful techniques of both, hidden somewhere. Quickly scanning the fire section, he passed through C and B level ones, going straight to the A ranked ones, before grabbing that particular scroll.

Quickly scanning the different techniques, Naruto skipped the ones he already knew. After passing through all of it, which wasn't much considering the high rank, Naruto managed to write down two techniques that he found useful.

_**Katon Dairyuuka**__ (Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique) _

_**Katon Kokyuu Ryuu**__ (Fire Release: Dragon's Breath Technique)_

Finding an empty scroll, he proceeded to write the techniques' description, hand signs, amount of chakra needed and method of molding. Naruto found out that his father's description wasn't focused on theory, like some of the books the Sandaime Hokage wrote. Minato's theory was reserved to the art of seals, whereas in terms of ninjutsu, the man preferred practice. Therefore, instead of explaining the concept of fire molding, the Fourth Hokage described terms like chakra feeling, the amount needed and the exact release time, so that the jutsu won't backfire and burn the ninja's lungs.

Feeling satisfied, the blond went to the section reserved to the art of seals. As he grasped the book titles, he could see a wide range of theory behind the art, going from chakra calligraphy to time-space theory to which Naruto admitted never hearing anything about. He was hoping that his father had something that covered everything there is to know about the art of fuuinjutsu, because quite frankly, he just couldn't take the entire section with him outside the village. Suddenly, Naruto's eyes landed on a rather thick notebook almost at the end of the shelf. Flipping the first page, Naruto started reading.

* * *

_April 10th_

_It's been two years since I was promoted to Chunnin and I'm now in search for a new field to specialize on. Passing through the library, I found something that spiked my interest. The art of seals called Fuuinjutsu. According to my research, it is considered a lost art, though it's written that anyone who manages to master all its aspects and theories will have a tremendous advantage in the midst of the battle field. Sensei Jiraiya is perhaps the only one in Konoha considered a master on the field, but I have yet to see any significant usage aside from storage seals and exploding tags. _

_

* * *

_Naruto was surprised to find his father's diary. He went to the next date as he continued reading.

_

* * *

_

_April 12th_

_After tons of research on the art of seals, I can honestly say I'm hooked. There is a lot of material to cover sure, but I bet the results will show itself with Konoha's victory against those vicious Iwagakure shinobi. The second great ninja war is in full force right now. With this new art, I'll hopefully be of better use to the village. Therefore, I decided to create this diary in order to register everything there is to know about the art of seals; everything that a ninja needs to understand in order to become a master as I intend to be one. Also, even though it's too early for me to even think of having a family being only thirteen years old, this diary will serve as a guideline for the future generation to come. So, to the one who reads this journal, I'll be listing my findings and also some techniques that I already found in my research. _

_

* * *

_

Deciding that that was enough reading, Naruto scanned through the next hundred pages and smiled upon seeing a great load of material collected by his father. After walking around the room a bit, Naruto was surprised to see a narrow corridor at the end of the library. Purely driven by curiosity, Naruto went through it before he reached what appeared to be a dojo.

So_ this is where you developed your skills in secret, Tou-san. _

The blond found strange, though, that the walls were covered by gigantic seal arrays.

_"__**Impressive yet again…these seals are quite rare; they are called Fuujutsu Kyuuin **__(Sealing Technique Absorption Seal)__**"**_

_'What are they for?'_

_"__**They manage to seal any ninjutsu, being elemental or not. The man must have placed them here in order to perfect his ninjutsu techniques without needing to worry about damaging this place. It's quite the skill to possess Naruto. Quite possibly, you would be able to seal off any type of ninjutsu, even the most dangerous ones. Let's just hope that the Yondaime's journal contains its description"**_

Naruto nodded, though his mind was focused in another use for this room.

_'Well, I guess we can also test our new fire jutsus in here through the night, what you think?' _The blond didn't need to be inside his cage to know that the fox was smiling at his idea.

* * *

**===With Hana===**

The rain remained for a while, so Inuzuka Hana decided to deal with some late paperwork at the veterinary's office. It was a known fact that dogs hated rain and she actually didn't mind staying a little longer. Long ago, Hana knew what she wanted to do, which was specializing in veterinary medicine. On certain occasions, she went on missions but only when the Hokage is in need of a tracker shinobi. After filing the animals' files, Hana yawned a bit, before switching off the lights of her office. The rain decreased a little, so it wouldn't bother her triplets much on her way home.

"I was hoping to catch you here Hana-chan…" Naruto announced as he just arrived outside the office. His clothes were slightly damaged from his ninjutsu training. The woman smiled at her boyfriend's presence, before giving Naruto a nice hug in appreciation for his presence. The smell of something burning reached her sensitive nostrils and looked worried at Naruto, who for his part, only smirked, knowing he couldn't fool her. Quickly touching his clothes, it was considerably warm to the touch as if the blond just fought a fire user.

"What the hell happened? You're almost on fire…"

"Easy...Hana-chan, I'm okay. It was just over practice with fire techniques. I slightly miscalculated the amount of chakra. Not to worry, though, I've been through worse…" Naruto said as he walked along his girlfriend and her dogs. Naruto, suddenly, felt the usage of chakra, before seeing Hana healing some small burned marks on his exposed skin. He could clearly see her worried face and smiled at how much he was loved by her and vice-versa. Nodding in appreciation, Naruto gently caressed the woman's face, earning a smile from the Inuzuka. After that, the two walked in a comfortable silence towards the Inuzuka Compound, not even caring about the population that slowly started to fill the streets now that the rain was gone.

Within minutes, the compound was already visible and Hana smiled once two of the triplets ran towards the house, probably competing with each other. The female, though, stayed by Naruto's side as expected by Hana. She mused sometimes about feelings of jealousy, but at the same time happiness that the dog accepted Naruto as her boyfriend. Like her family, Hana trusted their dogs blindly and if they ever snarled at someone or even charged at him or her, it was for a damn good reason. When the couple reached the door, Naruto stopped for a bit, surprising Hana as she looked at him.

"Hana-chan, I wanted to tell you that Tsunade-sama just promoted me to Jounin…" Naruto said, before he saw Hana looking down all of a sudden.

On normal occasion, she would be thrilled with the news. A jounin promotion demands respect and right now Naruto was one of the village's elite. However, she knew now that nothing would stop him from taking the streets once more looking for the village's criminals. Nevertheless, Hana found she couldn't complain. It was his job as a shinobi, after all to hunt the missing-ninjas and criminals of Konohagakure and dispose of them. A smile soon appeared, even if it was barely noticeable. She understood her boyfriend's job. However, this time Naruto wouldn't go alone, that much she was sure about.

She looked at her female partner with a smile as she was being caressed by Naruto. Hana could see that she was enjoying the ear massage tremendously.

"I understand Naruto…however I wish that you would take her with you on your trip…" Hana said, surprising the blond as he looked at Hana for a moment, before looking at Mangetsu (Full Moon).

"Are you serious Hana-chan?"

"What…you don't want her? I thought you adored little Mangetsu"

"No, it's not that. It's just that I don't know how to fight alongside them as your family does. Not to mention the fact that I'd be separating her from her brothers" Hana smiled at Naruto and kneeled to caress Mangetsu's fur.

The blond couldn't hear her from not being an Inuzuka, but Hana could and Mangetsu was expressing her happiness uncontrollably at being with Naruto.

"I know for a fact, Naruto-kun, that Mangetsu-chan misses you when you're gone. Kaa-san told me about this one time, but I never had the opportunity until now to discuss it with you. Do not worry about fighting alongside her. Mangetsu here is quite adaptable to any shinobi, not to mention the fact that she is the strongest of the three. No doubt, she will provide great assistance in tracking your enemies. Also, if you accept my dinner invitation, Kaa-san and I will explain to you everything you need to know about Mangetsu-chan here and how to battle alongside her. Also, as I can see you're still hesitant in accepting, kaa-san told me that her chakra pathways are ready for the final ritual. She already understands our language, but a jutsu of our clan is needed for her to actually speak"

Naruto knew it would mean much to Hana and Mangetsu if he accepted. However, looking at the situation from a logical point of view, he wasn't sure if he was able to take care of Mangetsu properly. Sighing in dismay at his situation, Naruto found he just couldn't say no. Apart from taking care of Mangetsu, which he had little to no experience about, she could be a powerful asset in the tracking department as well as fighting tough opponents that he alone couldn't handle.

"Okay Hana-chan…I'll take Mangetsu with me. However, I expect a full manual on how to deal with her…"

"Yes Naruto-taichou, step inside and let's begin your classes. Kaa-san, he said yes…" Hana shouted, earning a sweat drop from Naruto as he entered the compound along with his new partner in crime.

_Just how long were you planning this Hana-chan?_

_

* * *

_

_**===the next day===**_

On the very same date, kages from the hidden nations began their journey towards Iron Country, where the Kage Summit would occur in approximately two days. Senju Tsunade was no different as she stood at the West Gate, fully dressed with the Hokage clothes, as well as the fire red hat. She was flanked by both Hatake Sharigan no Kakashi and Maito Green Beast Gai. Jiraiya and Shizune were there among with the majority of Konoha 11, with the exception of Naruto and Sasuke of course, just to see their hokage leave towards the first major act of peace since the pact of neutrality signed after the Last Great Shinobi War by all five kages.

Minutes before Tsunade's departure, the gathered shinobi were about to leave for their current assignments when a hunter shinobi crossed their path, followed by a ninken.

To those who didn't know Naruto's real identity, the scene didn't strike as odd but for those who did; it was a rather amusing sight. Shino glanced briefly at the smiling Kiba, before seeing the Inuzuka speaking in Anbu level signal.

_I'll tell you later, once we're secure._

_Indeed…_

Jiraiya and Shizune looked at Naruto's back for an instance, but both shrugged since it's somehow linked to his girlfriend.

Naruto, for his part, as soon as he passed the gate, vanished towards a different direction followed by Mangetsu. He was a little bit tired from the lecture he received last night by Hana, Tsume and Kiba, in regards to having a dog partner. Needless to say, Naruto still had doubts; however Tsume told that he would be fine. Looking at the husky next to him, the blond knew one thing for sure.

He wasn't alone anymore.

"**I still think you should have said no. That smell is pissing me off. You know foxes and dogs don't get along don't you?"**

Also the fact that it pissed Kyuubi off was a huge bonus.

Ignoring the fox's growling inside its cage, Naruto continued travelling, when his senses alerted him of danger at the Hokage's direction. Mangetsu also sensed, since she stopped near him.

"What should we do?" Mangetsu asked, much to Naruto's secret amusement. Her voice carried strength and respect, similar to a seasoned kunoichi. Also, he was overjoyed by the fact that the dog didn't call him by his name.

"Let's go see if she needs help, of course. Kakashi and Gai are with her, but it doesn't hurt to check it out"

* * *

**===With the Hokage===**

Since the meeting wouldn't happen for about two days, Tsunade and her bodyguards didn't see the need to rush.

Also going in a civilian pace, it would take only a day and a half. There was no word shared by them, though, as Kakashi felt that he could catch up on some reading, which infuriated Tsunade. However, her thoughts right now were busy with other things like meeting with the dwarf Tsushikage and restraining her urges to castrate the man for his open statement of war against Konohagakure. Maito Gai, though, couldn't help but comment on Kakashi's unyouthfulness in reading such book in front of the Hokage to which Kakashi just shrugged it off and focused on the book.

That, of course, pissed him off.

However, all three of them stopped upon feeling enemy presence lingering around the bushes.

"Tsunade-sama…" Kakashi asked for permission.

"By all means, Kakashi…but focus on incapacitating them first"

As soon as Tsunade finished talking, the enemy made their presence known as they threw a great load of shurikens at the group. Tsunade didn't lift a finger, but her bodyguards were already on the move with Gai charging at the closest to them and Kakashi lifting an earth barrier in front of Tsunade to protect her from the attacks. Quickly lifting his hitai-ate, Kakashi revealed his Sharingan eyes, before charging at the group with a kunai in hand. He managed to parry the kunai with a kodashi, before he landed a fierce kick on one of them, sending him flying towards two others, knocking them down.

He could see two others flanking him from behind, before he began a series of hand seals.

_**Doton Doryuu Taiga**__ (Earth Release: Mud River Technique)_

_As _soon as the enemies landed on the ground to deliver the killing blow, the land was immediately transformed into a mud river, taking them away from Kakashi, who was already performing more hand seals.

_**Suiton Hahonryuu **__(Water Release: Destruction Torrent Technique)_

The water technique soon merged with the mud river technique, sending the two enemies straight towards a gigantic stone a few meters to the north, knocking them unconscious as the impact was too strong. Gai, for his part, was having a blast using his gouken style as he sent five of them flying towards a great set of trees. The rest of the enemies quickly fell victim to Kakashi's hypnotic Sharingan and fell on the ground, unconscious.

Just as the last one was dealt with, the earth wall protecting Tsunade was dispelled, earning a nod from the Hokage as she inspected the group's identity, hoping to find out why the hell they would be attacking a village Kage, without any reason whatsoever. Suddenly, though, all three sensed a presence behind the Hokage as she turned to face the only one who managed to sneak behind her while Kakashi and Gai were dealing with the rest. When she turned, though, she heard the distinct noise of metal piercing flesh and the enemy had blood coming off his mouth.

As soon as he hit the ground, Tsunade and her bodyguards saw Naruto and what appeared to be a dog by his side as he dislodged his sword from the attacker's body.

"I guess I arrived in the nick of time, Tsunade-sama…don't worry, though, I didn't hit any vitals" Said Naruto, but the Hokage was more interested in knowing the group who dared attacking her of all people at a time like this. The masks and wardrobe were familiar, but she couldn't just place it. Kakashi and Gai soon appeared by the woman's side as they inspected the man Naruto took care of. Gai was the same as Tsunade, only vaguely remembering the appearance, but Kakashi knew about them.

"They are the Hanya Clan of Assassins from Wood Country…" Kakashi said, attracting Tsunade's attention as she turned to look at him in surprise. A couple months ago, Konoha received an intelligence report that the Hanya Clan was somehow wiped out from the map by an unknown force. A part of her actually knew the reason behind the slaughter. When the hidden villages were founded, a great number of very powerful clans resided in unprotected lands. And because of their growth in skill and the lack of a village's protection, others usually saw an opportunity to get rid of the clans. The Hanya Clan was actually negotiating with Konohagakure to form an alliance of sorts. However, all of a sudden, they were wiped out, save from this group, obviously.

"Kakashi, send word to Jiraiya about this and tell him to gather an Anbu team to escort these into Konoha's custody. I want a word with them after the Kage Summit"

Tsunade ordered, before turning to Naruto who was waiting for a feedback. She took a look at the husky that took a seat next to Naruto and wondered how the blond could fight alongside a ninken like an Inuzuka. However, she figured that either Hana or Tsume convinced him to add this new partner on his travels.

"Hunter-nin Shi, I appreciate the assistance. Now, I believe you have your job set out for you. May I ask who is first on the list?"

"A-ranked missing-nin Hyuuga Tatsuko…" As soon as Naruto muttered the name, the three in front of him looked at him in shock; however it was more at the mention of the missing-nin's name. Tatsuko was in both Kakashi and Gai's academy classes and they remembered in vivid details the woman's crazy behavior when just a genin. After receiving the caged bird seal, she tried to murder one of the Clan's main branch members, only being stopped by Hyuuga Hiashi, who felt the level of killing intent back then. She managed to flee soon after.

Naruto knew this, though, by reading the bingo book.

"According to the bingo book, the woman suffered a mental breakdown after receiving the caged bird seal of the Hyuugas. Rumors estimate, though, that her brain was heavily influenced when Hyuuga Saito activated the seal for the first time. I actually don't understand why no one ever captured her, seeing as her motor functions aren't the same anymore, but considering her bloodline, I guessed people were afraid of facing a Hyuuga in battle. Now, seeing as the threat is done for, me and Mangetsu-chan here will go after our target. For a brain damaged shinobi, she still has some knowledge on how to hide her presence. Last place she was seen was Tanzaku Gai where she almost decapitated a civilian for bad mouthing her or something amongst those lines"

Naruto, then, bowed slightly in respect to the Hokage and vanished towards the next set of trees followed by Mangetsu. The rest looked at the blond's old position for a while, before Gai and Kakashi heard the Hokage sigh in dismay.

"Well, Kakashi…contact Jiraiya about the remnants of the Hanya Clan and do it quickly. We have to increase our pace now, in order to reach there on time"

* * *

**===Unknown location===**

Inside a dark cave, located somewhere around River Country, one individual was staring at the giant statue of Gedo Mazo as he considered the late disturbances to his plan. Words of Itachi's death by Sasuke's hands were first a blessing to this man as he now would move to the next part of his plan…convince Sasuke to join his cause and give him Itachi's eyes. However, as soon as Sasuke defeated Itachi, the younger Uchiha was captured by Konoha and taken into a place where Uchiha Madara couldn't for the life of him enter and get him out of it. His space-time technique required a heavy load of chakra and if the room, as he assumed, was filled with chakra suppressors, then Sasuke wasn't within his grasp anymore.

It was completely unfortunate, but otherwise not accounted for in Madara's opinion.

Akatsuki suffered heavy damage because of the Sannin Jiraiya and the damn Kyuubi Jinchuuriki. However, Madara still had his most trusted and loyal subordinates by his side. Right now, Akatsuki had eight of the nine bijuus, meaning the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki was the only one left. Sealing the eight tailed demon was too taxing on the remaining agents and a beast as powerful as the Kyuubi would require more chakra. Still, Madara was confident that any time now, Naruto would be captured and sealed as soon as they managed to _convince _someone with great chakra capacity to join their cause. Now, it was time to reveal his plans to the world.

"Nagato…" Madara called, before two set of Rinnegan eyes appeared within the darkness. "I feel it's time for us to reach the Kage Summit and introduce ourselves…what you think?

* * *

**Author Note**

So, what you guys think?

Naruto managed to return to his hunting once more, but this time he has a new partner in crime. Also, Tsunade and the others are about to reach the Kage Summit as the Senju Princess will face the midget Tsushikage, after his blunt offense on a Konoha Shinobi. Wonder what's going to happen, once those two meet once more?

Also, what will happen to the Kages now that not only Madara, but Pain will attend the meeting?

Find out next chapter.

Please let me know about your ideas.

See ya.


	20. Kage Summit

**Author Note**

Hello there once more and welcome to another chapter of Hunter-nin.

But before I start the chapter, I just want to express my severe disappointment in Kishimoto's way of thinking. Well, not surprising isn't it? But this time, the man reached rock bottom.

**(Manga Spoilers, so skip if you don't want to read it). **

Instead of placing Naruto on the front lines under one of the generals, they choose to protect him as one of the last jinchuuriki. Sorry, but if Akatsuki wins the war, there won't be anyone left to salvage, so why not place the heavy artillery from the start? It makes no sense. Also, instead of explaining this to him, they continue to underestimate the blond, giving him a fake mission to study the animals living on top of the giant turtle. I wouldn't be surprised if at the end of the war, the alliance is down to a few minimum and the two Jinchuurikis are called to deal with the enemy.

Seriously, it pisses me off to see a man who defeated enemies no one could defeat and still be treated as nothing but a child. But hey, news flash, I don't own the Naruto universe.

Now, regarding my hunter-nin story, last chapter, Naruto received the jounin promotion. Because of this, he is now able to go hunting once more. However, the blond gained a new partner, courtesy of his girlfriend's clan. Also, Tsunade started her trip towards Iron Country, together with Maito Gai and Hatake Kakashi. Wonder what will happen once she meets with the Tsushikage?

Enjoy!

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**Chapter 20 – Kage Summit**

**Beta: Kyuubi123**

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It has been two days since Naruto left the Hidden Village in the Leaves and things went back to normal once more. He enjoyed being out of the village. It brought a sense of freedom, while at the same time maintained the level of loyalty that was expected of its shinobi. True, he loved his girlfriend and the time he spent with her family was more than anything Naruto could ever ask for, but…being out here looking for missing-nins was different. The thrill of the hunt was exhilarating. Add to the fact that he now had one of Konoha's best noses; no one could escape his grasp now.

His next target, according to the bingo book, was last seen in Tanzaku Gai.

Mangetsu managed to find traces of her scent lingering close by. The bingo book had enough detail on the target that a ninja dog, with enough training, could sense and triangulate their position. That being said, Naruto simply resumed to walk towards the gambling village of Fire Country. It wouldn't bode well for him if the woman spotted him coming a mile away and prepared beforehand. After all, it was the hunter's job to sneak attack someone, not the other way around. Not to mention that Tatsuko could very well flee and Naruto would have to chase the woman once more. Within half an hour, he reached the small gates of the gambling city and went inside for a quick scout, before finding a hotel to stay. One of the traits of a hunter-nin was that he didn't need to worry about time. If he wanted to take a week to capture a missing-nin, he was free to do so.

Not that he ever had to wait that long, but it only made the feeling of freedom that much more enjoyable.

As Naruto passed through the city, he could hear varied emotions coming from the civilians and even some of the samurais/rounins. Some screamed to the heavens asking how they could have lost their savings to gambling, while others just savored their winnings. It was always like this, in the end. In gambling, either you win or you lose…just like a shinobi, he supposed. The only difference was that by gambling, you could lose all your money, but as a shinobi, you could lose your life, instead. Naruto could see Mangetsu sniffing around a bit and he knew it wouldn't take long for her to locate the Hyuuga missing-nin. However, if the woman was as smart as he assumed, Naruto liked to always overestimate his enemies, she would be aware of their presence, the minute she spotted the nin-dog. He couldn't allow it to happen.

"Mangetsu-chan, let's find a hotel nearby…there is no sense scouting the entire village in one day, right?"

"But…"

"If our target realizes we're here, she will have two choices. One, try to flee, which is not advisable since we would have to chase her or two, she decides to fight in the middle of the city. I don't want either of these choices, so let's continue the hunt some other time. You've already located her scent in the village. Just focus your nose and memorize it" After seeing the dog nod briefly, Naruto turned to see a nice little inn just on top of a sushi stand. It didn't take ten minutes to get a room, as the hotel wasn't so popular amongst the tourists. To Naruto, it suited just fine. It wasn't overpriced like some of the hotels he had to stay before and the hotel's location provided him a nice view of the entire village without having to look around for his target.

A couple meters far from the inn, a purple haired woman was trying her luck at the poker tables, seemingly oblivious to the fact that she was being hunted.

Being a missing-nin, she didn't have a steady income, so whatever money she managed by protecting some merchant or being a shylock for one of the small banks in Tanzaku Gai, she tried her luck in gambling. With her Byakugan, she could spot deception a mile away and, thus, she managed to win every time. It wasn't glorious, sure. But, her entire life wasn't glorious, after what her family did to her back in Konohagakure. The woman swore revenge against the man who used the caged bird seal technique on her. To this day, she could remember the unbearable pain. Suddenly, a lone tear escaped her left eye. It was a feeling she loathed, but still she couldn't get rid of it.

* * *

**===In Iron Country===**

The trip towards the Kage Summit went without much incident, after the encounter with the Hanya Clan. Iron Country was a neutral country, ruled by an old man named Mifune, a skilled samurai that perhaps was the only one with knowledge of chakra. As the party from Konoha entered the castle, they were soon joined by the castle guards, who halted their advance, in exchange for identification. As Tsunade handled her invitation, Kakashi eyed the guards. All of them appeared to use a white armor, covering their entire bodies and swords strapped on their waists. It was obvious that they were samurai. While one of the guards was busy checking the validity of the invitation, the rest of them were bending their bodies towards the swords.

With this, they could draw their swords much faster, in case of an attack.

"Stand down, all of you…Welcome to Iron Country Hokage-dono" A grumpy voice startled the Hokage and her bodyguards, before they saw the man responsible for this land, Mifune. By appearances alone, he didn't look like much. Long black hair, wrinkled face and a weird looking beard, he walked around with a black metallic cane to support himself because of his old age. However, in the ninja world, like Kakashi said, you always had to look underneath appearances. Mifune were once one of the best samurai and his knowledge of chakra gave him an advantage in battle. Kakashi wouldn't be surprised if the man taught all his guards his wisdom.

"Konoha is the last party to arrive…the other Kages are waiting for you past the door behind me. The bodyguards will be on the upper level through the door on my left"

The Konoha party nodded as Kakashi and Gai went to the stairs leading to the upper levels, while Tsunade accompanied Mifune to the meeting table.

The castle interior was ancient and probably Mifune probably didn't care much about decoration. As soon as they entered the meeting, Mifune announced the Hokage's arrival, startling the other kages that were waiting. As she laid eyes on the Kazekage, she gave Gaara a brief nod which was reciprocated by the young Kage. The Raikage and Tsushikage were old war veterans; therefore she knew all of them. Tsunade was surprised, though, with she saw the Mizukage. Mei Terumi was one of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist and although very strong and equally beautiful, tended to be quite hot-headed and made mistakes.

At least, that was on Jiraiya's report after the end of the civil war in Kirigakure.

"Greetings Hokage-dono, it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance once more" Said Onooki, with a smile that infuriated Tsunade to her core. Kakashi did warn her that he would be goading her into retaliating because of what he did with Naruto, but she needed to maintain her composure here. Such unjustified acts wouldn't sit well with the other kages. It didn't manner, though, she reasoned. In the end of this meeting, Iwagakure will be forced to comply with her demands, since the man just couldn't risk breaking the pact of neutrality without any justified reason.

"The pleasure is all mine Tsushikage-dono" Tsunade said as she went to the Konoha side of the table, not even looking at the still smirking midget Tsushikage.

The man was a little bit surprised at the lack of hostility in her tone, but didn't stop pressing his luck. No doubt, he would be able to goad her into retaliating. After Tsunade took her seat, the leader of Iron Country called the meeting to order.

"As all of you know, my name is Mifune and I'm the leader of this country. This meeting was arranged by Raikage-dono, who also appointed me as moderator. The topic of discussion is the organization named Akatsuki and the threat it poses to the elemental nations. As far as we know, they are after the demons called bijuus and its respective jinchuuriki, Raikage-dono's brother being amongst them. I will now pass the word to the one responsible for this meeting, before we begin any form of discussions…by all means Raikage-dono"

After hearing his name, 'A' lifted from his chair, before slamming both hands on the table, as he addressed his fellow kages. He had white hair and a small, almost imperceptible beard. His exaggeratedly built muscles would suggest that the man preferred strength over speed, but anyone who thought that, would be crushed by his immense power and control of lightning chakra.

"First of all, I want to extend my appreciation for all you present here today. I understand that the threat Akatsuki poses isn't recent as many would believe, but right now they've gone too far. Not only did they capture one of my village's top jounins Nii Yugito, but also they had the audacity of kidnapping my brother. It's time to put a stop to this" The Raikage, despite is frightening figure, was considered a kind man regarding his family and shinobi. However, it went without saying that this meeting only happened because the man suffered the loss of his brother.

Tsunade relaxed her stance a little bit as she leaned on the table, exposing her large assets to anyone who wished to see them.

"I understand your concern Raikage-dono, I really do. However, like you said, Akatsuki's threat goes back a long time, almost five years now. In fact, my fellow teammate and one of the Sannin Jiraiya worked hard to gather all evidence of this organization and handed to all my fellow kages, so that we could prepare beforehand. I'm sure you remember what you did with the information he supplied to your village, right Raikage-dono." The frown on the man's face was evident, but the jabbing was justified, he reasoned. When Jiraiya came with the Akatsuki file, Yugito wasn't yet captured. 'A' was a proud man; therefore he didn't think one single organization could scare one of the great elemental nations.

"An organization formed of nine S-class criminals, all from each hidden village, poses a threat to everyone. Not only have they had knowledge of our most intricate defensive system, but also how to find the respective jinchuuriki. As all of you know, I was a former Jinchuuriki and they simply captured me right inside Sunagakure. And they did without even alerting any of my shinobi. Also, despite their recent losses, courtesy of Konoha's Sannin Jiraiya, they remain a threat that cannot be ignored."

Tsunade smiled at Gaara, who despite wanting to proudly say that Naruto was responsible for some of Akatsuki's losses, didn't mention his name. He, more than anyone, wanted Akatsuki dealt with, however when she saw the Tsushikage smirking, she immediately knew something bad would come out of his mouth.

"That's a good speech and all kid, but it seems your feelings against Akatsuki isn't shared by your predecessor and his advisors. I believe some of them even hired Akatsuki once or twice"

"What are you talking about?" Gaara shouted as he lifted from his seat and slammed both hands on the table, quite to Onooki's smirk as he loved goading people.

"I'd advise you kid to question your advisor on this manner"

"You of all people here Tsushikage-dono shouldn't be saying this, seeing as Iwagakure ended up hiring them a great number of times in the past. I guess the village resources were limited at the time, right? According to my spy network, before the bijuus hunting even started, Akatsuki was collecting funds for their activities. Funds, I believe, that Iwagakure was all too happy to supply for high level missions." Jiraiya may be a no good pervert, but when it came to information gathering, there was no equal. Also, the reproved look of the other kages as they stared at Onooki made it all the better.

"I believe we are deviating from the subject at hand here…" Mifune said, receiving glares from the kages, but he remained impassive. "Whether or not, one of the villages was responsible for the group's upbringing, we just cannot continue with the accusations. Now, as moderator of this meeting, I propose an adjournment. Today was meant for introductions only, but in the end, it resulted in bloody accusations to one another. We'll continue this meeting same time tomorrow. Now, all your accommodations are ready, so please follow my samurai…"

None of the kages objected to the order as they respected Mifune's call on this manner. In order for a negotiation to happen, the parties must maintain a clear and objective mind.

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

The next day, Naruto woke up and covered his eyes at the sudden sunlight that invaded his hotel room. Quickly covering his morning routine, the hunter-nin was fully geared in half an hour. Mangetsu was still sound asleep next to his bed. With a smirk, the blond ate some ration bars, before opening the scroll supplied by the Inuzuka containing their specialized meal which was given to all of their dogs. It didn't take two seconds, before he placed his dog's food on the ground and Mangetsu flew at him with its growling stomach.

"This food must have some kind of alluring substance to you huh Mangetsu-chan!" Naruto said as he caressed his companion a bit. "We'll be busy all day, so eat everything…"

The silence that followed was enough for Naruto to consider the situation in hand. According to his companion, Tatsuko's scent was still strong meaning the woman hadn't left Tanzaku Gai yet. However, Naruto just couldn't face her inside the village, from fear of her using some leverage against him and getting away. He knew, though, that eventually she would have to leave this area. A missing ninja can't always be in one place. They must move constantly in order to avoid detection from the hunter-nins. It was a shame that Naruto's first A-ranked target was this sloppy when it came to hiding her position. Even if now he had a tracker in Mangetsu, in normal situations, a Hyuuga would be able to detect his presence and flee right away.

Something was definitely odd in this situation, Naruto reasoned. His chief Uzuki Gaeshi always instructed him to follow his own instincts. Therefore, Naruto always played safe by overestimating his opponents.

It wouldn't bode well for him to underestimate someone, especially someone with a doujutsu like the Byakugan. It was better to assume that Tatsuko already knew that someone was following her. Seeing that the dog finished its meal, Naruto left the room and paid for the bill. After that, his eyes began searching for the missing-nin, while formulating a plan to lure the woman away from the village and deal with her properly, without interference. After wandering throughout the village for half an hour, Naruto saw Mangetsu looking at a specific direction, before he looked as well at his target from afar. _At least, she had the decency to hide her appearance from everyone…but it's her alright. _Naruto, then, looked away as if he wasn't looking at her and told Mangetsu to walk away from his position, so that she can't find her.

As soon as the woman rolled the dices, her instincts kicked in and she activated her Byakugan.

Immediately, the image of yet another one of those hunter ninja appeared behind her. She immediately cursed as her sloppiness ended up revealing her position. However, according to her doujutsu, the man had yet to look at her direction, meaning that he didn't spot her yet. Cursing at the fact that she just lost her money, she walked away hoping to gain distance from the man. Quickly getting inside a dark alley, the woman started to run towards the village gate with the finesse taught by her clan and her experience of escaping the hunter ninjas' persecution. Her doujutsu allowed her to triangulate his position and flee accordingly. Meanwhile, her heart was beating fast for some reason. Her breathing was strangely quick and she found out that her steps weren't soundless like it was supposed to be. She was having a bad feeling about this hunter ninja. Her doujutsu allowed her to see the shinobi's chakra coils and safe to say, she was scared shitless. The hunter-nin's chakra was immense, far greater than anyone she'd ever encountered. If they ended up engaging, Tatsuko doubted if she could win.

'_No, I cannot go back to that hell. I prefer death rather than returning and suffering the clan's penalties.'_

After taking a great distance from the gate, she activated her Byakugan once more to be safe, but Tatsuko tensed when she saw the man appear a few meters behind her with his arms crossed. Immediately, she turned and faced the man with her Byakugan active and ready for battle. However, the fact that he managed to locate her position in a second spoke highly of the man's skills as a tracker. She could see his chakra coils building up, meaning he too was prepared for battle. The woman was surprised by the sudden change to fire nature chakra as the hunter-nin started a sequence of hand seals.

_**Katon Goukakyuu no Jutsu **__(Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique)_

Tatsuko bit her lip at the sudden hostility, before initiating the Hyuuga's defense technique **Kaiten**, she learned by stealing a scroll from the clan's archive when still a kunoichi under Konohagakure. With it, it was easy to block the fire technique. However, when she saw the man once more, she cursed at his mock clapping.

"I'm impressed Hyuuga. There aren't many branch members that are able to learn main branch techniques, except for one but that's not the issue. Also, I didn't think you'd manage this on your own, seeing as you were still a genin by the time you escaped"

One thing Naruto knew about the Hyuuga Clan was that aside from Neji Hyuuga, the rest of the branch members despised the main branch. And he was capitalizing on this weakness as he could see the woman flinch by his insinuation that just because she was not a member of the main branch, she didn't possess the skills to learn their techniques. Tatsuko, for her chance, tried controlling her breathing a little bit. It was no secret the hatred between the different branches of the Hyuuga Clan and the hunter-nin was capitalizing on her hatred. Steeling her resolve, Tatsuko focused on the Hyuuga clan stance as the hunter-nin slowly approached her position.

"You know, I never bothered to tell my targets, their options. I won't bother with you all the same. Get ready Hyuuga…"

Tatsuko didn't wait for Naruto, though, as she charged at him with the intention of closing his tenketsus. Her speed was interesting, Naruto reasoned. However, by focusing a bit of chakra through his legs, he was able to evade all of the tenketsus closing strikes. Pumping chakra to his hands, he grabbed the hilt of his sword just as he dodged an incoming blow to his chest. When he took off the sword from the scabbard, it was already on fire as he aimed a diagonal strike at the woman, but she managed to move away from the dangerous attack by doing some back flips. However, Naruto wouldn't have it as he began a new series of hand seals, while molding a different elemental chakra.

_**Fuuton Daitoppa no Jutsu **__(Wind Release: Great Breakthrough Technique)_

The woman couldn't even finish her movements as she was sent flying. Nevertheless, her eyes managed to save her life as they spotted a sudden lift of earth in front of her, courtesy of a doton jutsu. Flipping her body in mid-air, she managed to land both her feet on the now created hill, before focusing chakra for a strong jump towards Naruto's position. The blond was startled by the move as he got ready for anything. The woman landed a few meters from him, before she initiated a familiar stance that Naruto instantly recognized. For a powerful clan as the Hyuuga, their movements were too predictable, given that you actually fought another member before and lived to tell the tale.

"I'm sorry hunter-san, but Kaiten isn't the only technique I learned from the main branch. _**Hakke Rokujuuyonshou**_ (Eight Divination Sings, Sixty Four Palms Technique)"

Tatsuko, quickly and swiftly, began her series of palm strikes, landing the first 2 on the surprised hunter ninja, followed by the rest sixty two palms, before slamming the last one right on his chest, closing all of Naruto's tenketsus. However, her smirk died when the one she used her most deadly technique on vanished in a puff of smoke, revealing a tree log instead. She bit her lip at being beaten by a mere Academy jutsu, before looking around for the hunter ninja. She just couldn't believe a man of such chakra to revert to simple techniques such as this one. Suddenly, two hands appeared from the ground grabbing her ankles, startling the Hyuuga missing-nin as her mind processed the information and how to counter it. However, her Byakugan spotted a new enemy just in front of her, making hand seals.

_**Fuuin Hyoushi no Jutsu**__ (Binding Seal Technique)_

Naruto slammed his glowing hand on Tatsuko's neck, before focusing his chakra on the seal imprinted on his palm, just like his father's notes explained. Within seconds, ink marks started to appear all over her body, binding her in place. Usually, the blond would be against testing this new technique against someone who could retaliate from close range, but it worked in the end. Though, he figured that the technique wasn't complete, as the markings only went towards her waist, not binding her entire body, but at least enough to hold her in place for the death blow.

"Hyuuga Tatsuko, A-ranked missing-nin, considered guilty by the Hyuuga Clan and Council of Konoha of treason for openly attacking a member of the clan's main branch. This is your last chance to surrender"

Tatsuko bit her lip cursing this man and at the same time cursing her life. She never crossed paths with someone like this, it was unbelievable. Every damn attack she threw at him, it was either dodged or evaded. It was so frustrating; it was like he was one step ahead of her the entire time. Still, when she saw the flaming sword in his hands, she immediately knew it would be her end. Suddenly, all her life passed by her eyes in flashes as she realized her fate. Though, she briefly wondered why the man only sought to ask her to surrender after he won the fight. _At least, I won't be killed by another Hyuuga…_

"I do not wish to surrender hunter-san. The moment I saw you I knew you would be the one to kill me. I only want to ask one question, if I may…"

Naruto could see in her eyes that she already resigned her fate at his sword. Also the markings could only be cancelled by either another fuuinjutsu user or himself, so he would let her ask.

"About what you said you knew one of the branch members that managed to learn the main branch techniques. Do you know his or her name?"

"His name is Neji Hyuuga, son of the deceased Hyuuga Hizashi"

_So little Neji-kun…I always knew he was destined for more. At least, I'll die knowing that the clan has a future after all. _

Tatsuko only nodded in appreciation for Naruto, before she closed her eyes, not willing to see how she died by the hands of the hunter ninja. Half her mind only wished it would be painless.

Her wish was granted as Naruto's flaming sword sliced her head off in less than a second, before focusing his chakra on a small Katon jutsu to burn her body. Quickly grabbing a new storage scroll, he sealed the woman's head inside and wrote a quick report to the Hokage. After that, he summoned another messenger toad (Gamakichi was on vacation) and asked him to take the scroll to the Hokage, which the toad accepted and vanished just as Mangetsu appeared from her hiding place.

"Now that she's dealt with, I guess it's high time for some training. Wanna join Mangetsu-chan…" The dog nodded, before Naruto managed a single hand seal. He gritted in pain, though, from using chakra, though as the woman managed to seal up two of his tenketsus, before he managed to escape her technique.

'_Hey fox, could you perhaps overload those tenketsus with your chakra. I'm in pain over here…'_

"**I shouldn't, you know…you almost lost this battle, because you got too close for comfort. But what the hell…give me two seconds…"** Kyuubi said as Naruto was involved in red chakra for a moment, before the tenketsus were opened once more. Smiling behind his mask, Naruto returned to the task in hand.

_**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu**__ (Shadow Clones Technique)_

Suddenly, three exact replicas appeared in front of him as they got ready to fight against Naruto and Mangetsu.

"Okay, aside from the sword, everything goes…everyone ready!"

All the clones smirked at the terms as they all teamed up against the real one. Until now, Naruto never used his clones to this extent, but he figured that if anything, he will better learn how to use his ninjutsu, maybe to the point that he masters them. Plus, he was meaning to get more acquainted to using fuuinjutsu in the midst of battle. He just hoped that none of them got too excited over this, otherwise he would need to worry about his limbs being sliced by wind techniques. Naruto didn't get to ponder more on the possible restrictions as two of the clones charged at him in taijutsu, while the third remained back for support.

The real Naruto blocked an incoming kick on the ribs from the first clone and dodged a punch from another just as his eyes landed on the third clone, making hand seals. He had to think fast; otherwise he would be torched as he saw the last hand sign. As the clones reached his position once more to stall him, the real Naruto blocked the incoming punch and managed to deliver one at the attacking clone's ribcage, sending him to the ground. These clones were created by using more chakra, thus they are more resilient to impact. The other taijutsu clone just jumped backwards as he knew the imminent technique was about to be completed. The ninjutsu clone, for instance, focused chakra to his lungs.

_**Katon Karyuu Endan **__(Fire Release: Great Fire Dragon Missile Technique)_

The clone, then, expelled the dangerous white flame technique straight at the real Naruto, who quickly focused on the ram seal.

_**Doton Doryuuheki**__ (Earth Release: Mud Wall Technique)_

Naruto knew this technique wouldn't be enough to stop the most powerful fire technique in his arsenal. He was already developing a plan of attack, when the mud wall started to crack under the pressure of the hot white fire. Looking at the dog by his side, they both nodded and scattered, when the fire technique pierced his wall of mud. Mangetsu charged at the nearest clone with her **Tsuuga** technique, dispelling it while Naruto charged the other two. The clone nearest to Naruto blocked the assault, but wasn't fast enough to avoid a reverse kick aimed at his sideways. The clone was sent flying, just as Naruto finished some hand seals.

_**Katon Zukokku**__ (Fire Release: Head Mincing Pain Technique)_

Beneath Naruto, a torrent of fire was created, until it spread all the way towards the other two clones, dispelling them immediately as Mangetsu appeared by his side.

"Well, I guess summoning only three wasn't enough, huh! How about we raise the stakes, Mangetsu-chan. How about ten, this time? Think you're up for it?" The dog's smirk was Naruto's only response as he made another bunch of clones with some of Kyuubi's chakra to increase their resistance. _Huh, how about summoning some toads as well? This is a secluded region and I can't sense a single soul wandering around these parts. _At least, it would please the toads a bit. Jiraiya once mentioned that despite summoning Gamakichi for tracking missing-nins, Naruto didn't find usage for more. Sure, they understood his reasons as a toad summoner would attract too much attention from Akatsuki, who knew this particular skill. Quickly summoning ten _kage bunshins_, Naruto bit both thumbs, before slamming both hands on the ground. The summoning kanjis immediately appeared from the ground, before four set of smokes appeared in front of him.

He could see four battle sized toads, all of them carrying weapons. They were a bit taller than he was and Naruto smiled upon seeing some familiar faces amongst the four. The toads, for their chance, greeted their summoner while Naruto nodded at them and told their purpose for being summoned. He, then, took a moment to gather nature energy, seeing as his opponents were now toads, thus different from the bunshins.

"Mangetsu-chan, why don't we stay out of this training session for a while? I just raised the states a bit more than I should..."

The dog just nodded and went to the lake nearby to have some water and some rest, while the carnage began.

* * *

**===At the Kage Summit===**

A great distance away from Naruto's position, the Kages were busy dealing with the threat known as the Akatsuki. Mifune's idea to postpone the meeting for one day proved fruitful as the parties were much more relaxed than the day before.

Surely, the man was expecting such level of resentment as the five hidden villages fought each other, since their foundation. Nevertheless, he could see that despite being powerful on their own, the five kages know when to fight and when to concede. Looking at the Hokage, the man couldn't help but wonder about Konoha's force over the other villages. The Hokage was proof of that, as not once did she overact or use any sort of threat against her former enemies. Her voice was calm as she brought a great deal of experience in fighting against the organization.

After all, Konoha did kill the majority of their members, on its own.

As Tsunade explained to the other kages about some of Akatsuki's members and their known abilities, Kakashi and Gai were listening from the top level floor. After the first meeting, the three arranged a meeting to discuss their strategies. Kakashi smiled at the fact that Tsunade managed to avoid either glaring at the Tsushikage or even give the man any form of indication that she actually wanted his head on a silver platter. As to the meeting itself, the man had its reservations. The whole point of this meeting was pretty obvious at this point. Otherwise, the Raikage wouldn't even think of such a thing. The question was…would it be wise to take such course of action? The scarecrow jounin tended to be quite realistic and he expressed his reasons to Tsunade, although the woman was convinced that should the proposition manifest, she would accept it.

He just hoped, beyond hope, that history won't repeat itself.

Seeing as all parties were up for it, Mifune gathered everyone's attention by clearing his throat a bit.

"I believe that all five of the Kages agree with me about the mutual interest in getting rid of the organization Akatsuki. Therefore, I hereby propose an alliance to be formed by all five villages in order to deal with this threat…" As soon as Mifune finished talking, there were murmurs from the top level as none actually believed such a thing was possible, considering what happened in the past. The kages, though, aren't as skeptical as each of them smiled at the offer, especially the Raikage who wanted nothing but to destroy those responsible for his brother and Yugito.

"Indeed, an alliance between the five nations would build an unstoppable force. Akatsuki may be formed of S-ranked criminals, but there is a reason why they fear even one of us. Kumo is in favor of the alliance…"

"Sunagakure agrees as well…" Gaara rose from his chair as he extended his support to Mifune's idea. His actions were mirrored by the Mizukage, who said that the Mist was no longer known as the Bloody Mist and was now searching for means to prove that.

The Tsushikage, though, didn't express his agreement at first. As expected from a man of his experience, it wasn't easy to simply let go of the past and abide to this alliance. He looked at Tsunade only to bite his lip at the thought of joining forces with the Leaf. The same village that was responsible for nearly extinguishing Iwagakure from the map. _Worst of all was that only one man could be blamed…damn you Yondaime Hokage. Even in your grave, you mock Iwagakure, huh? I bet you're laughing right now from hell…but I have no choice. Three villages already said yes to the alliance and no doubt, Konoha will abide by as well. If I don't, then Iwa will be badly viewed by the others, I can't have that…_

"Iwagakure accepts as well…" If Tsunade was surprised, she didn't show it as she remained her impassive face as all four kages and Mifune looked at her, waiting for her response. She couldn't help but smirk, though, as Iwagakure dig its hole even deeper by accepting this alliance. He just can't back away now…

"Oh Konoha is in favor, however there is one matter I wish to clear out with my fellow kages, before we proceed…" The woman's smile was almost vicious now and her attitude changed completely. Others just wondered what was wrong with her, but the Tsushikage was suspicious. "During the last Chunnin exams held in Iwagakure, one of my genin shinobi reported to me some serious breach from the old pact of neutrality that our past generations worked so hard for. For you see, the genin named Uzumaki Naruto was deliberately attacked by the Tsushikage himself. While the genin is safe, the attack alone constitutes a severe breach on our pact"

The rest of the population inside the room glared at the Tsushikage, demanding an explanation, but the Hokage had other plans in mind. Gaara's glare was the hardest, seeing as he was the one that protected Naruto from the kunai onslaught as well as Jiraiya. He even showed a faint smirk at the Hokage's political ability in getting what Konoha deserved, without any form of retaliation. He knew that any wrong move on her part could jeopardize everything. The possibility of Konoha and Iwagakure engaging a new war once more would be devastating. And with the Akatsuki still on the loose, surely it would be something to capitalize upon, in hopes of capturing the only remaining Jinchuuriki.

"Just so all you know, Konoha doesn't plan on backing out of this alliance. We'll just settle for an easy agreement here with all our fellow kages as witnesses. Fair enough Tsushikage-dono?" The look on the man's face was priceless and the woman was doing victory laps inside her head at her achievement. No doubt, Naruto's attack wouldn't go unpunished and she could use a few A-ranked earth techniques to boost the strength of Konoha's shinobi. Not to mention that the fine amount would serve to acquire new ninja tools that she knew people were complaining about the last couple of months.

Mifune, for his part, cleared his throat one last time so as to get this meddling situation out of the way and discuss the alliance.

"I happened to read the pact of neutrality signed by all five kages after the last great shinobi war. As stated, any village that breaks the pact, in any form of way, will be condemned to a fine and be obligated to hand the attacked village, five of the village's A-ranked ninjutsu. I believe, that in favor of our present agreement Tsushikage-dono, you won't object to this penalty"

The Tsushikage narrowed his eyes at the smirking Tsunade. She must have planned this the entire time, he reasoned. Now, with four other kages as witnesses, it would simply be too high of a risk to deny the accusations. Thinking back to the assault on Minato's son, he cursed at the Kazekage's interference. Those kunais would pierce Naruto's body entirely and seeing as all the kunais were laced with poison, not even the almighty Kyuubi would be able to heal the boy. Iwagakure's revenge wasn't meant to happen and Konoha itself made sure of that.

"No, I do not object Mifune-san. I'll only ask that the Hokage can arrange some of her men to reach Iwagakure, in three days. I'll have everything ready…" Onooki spoke in a defeated tone, much to Tsunade's pleasure.

"I'll be happy to assign a team right after my departure. Now, let's continue with the meeting at hand, shall…" Tsunade spoke, but was interrupted by a sudden feeling.

"I hate to interrupt this meeting, but it's all for good reason, I assure you…" Everyone's eyes snapped in attention to two Akatsuki members, namely Pein and Madara.

* * *

**Author Note**

What will happen to the alliance now that both Madara and Pain are there to interrupt? What is Madara planning on showing himself and his Rinnegan second in command to the five most powerful ninjas?

Also, what will be of Naruto, now that he's the only living Jinchuuriki?

Find out next chapter.

Also, feel free to submit a review or send me a PM, whatever you feel like it. I enjoy discussing Naruto ideas with everyone.

Plus, I placed a challenge in my profile page. I was meaning to create a new story, but hey who I'm kidding! I don't have the time to properly update the already existing stories, let one throw another one into the mess. It's an idea I had after seeing the last Shippuuden Movie. It involves one of the bloodlines mentioned at the last Naruto Shippuuden Movie called **Jintou** (Swift Release). If anyone is interested, please check it out and let me know. I already had a few Naruto maniacs interested, but nothing so far. Go to my profile and check it out. Maybe it will inspire someone to write it.

_Ja ne._


	21. Caged Tiger

**Author Note**

Hello and welcome to another Chapter of 'The path of the hunter-nin'.

Before the chapter, though, I'd like to take the moment and inform that I ended up making a little mistake in chapter 19. When Madara says that he and Pein would attend the Kage Summit, he contemplated that he had seven of the nine bijuus. However, Kirabi was captured by Akatsuki, hence why the Raikage summoned the other Kages. So, I've changed the end of Chapter 19. I'd advice, before reading this chapter, to go back and re-read the last part. With the change, I bet all of you will come to the same conclusion about Naruto's situation. What you don't know is what will happen to him now that he's the last one standing.

Well, check it out!

* * *

**Chapter 21 – Caged Tiger**

**Beta: Kyuubi123**

**

* * *

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The five kages were startled to see the famous Akatsuki robes as if both individuals were considered plagues that needed to be extinguished once and for all. The majority of the kages, though, remained under control and listened to what the man with the orange swirling mask was about to say. The Yondaime Raikage, though, couldn't control himself and started emitting lightning energy all over his body. In no time at all, he landed a punch at Madara, only for him to pass right through the Uchiha founder like he wasn't even there in the first place. The Raikage gritted his teeth and focused his attack on the other member only for him to be sent flying once more, courtesy of Pein's attack.

"As I was saying, before we were rudely interrupted by the Raikage, I merely wish to talk with you all. It's quite rare to see such an occasion, I might add. In my time, this very thought would be a sign of weakness…I guess the times have changed"

Unsurprisingly, the comment only reached the grumpiest individuals in the room, namely the Tsushikage and the Raikage. Though none of them attacked this time and the Tsushikage considered the man's last phrase.

"It's quite rude of you to raise this much of animosity between our villages and not even introduce yourself. Am I to assume that a man who appears responsible for this madness doesn't have the courage to let the enemy know his identity?" The mocking laughter that followed managed to piss everyone at the lack of obvious respect this man had shown towards the Tsushikage. Even if the other shinobis had different alliances, belittling a kage just wasn't done without terrible repercussions. To do so, meant that either this man was a lunatic or had enough skills to face a kage level shinobi.

This wasn't surprising, considering that the group targets the tailed beasts.

"Doing so at this point Onooki would be quite counter-productive. You see, I came here in order to reveal to everyone about Akatsuki's plan, our goal, to be more precise. By the mention of my name, some of you will feel quite nostalgic, for as in my time, most of you weren't even born yet. My name is Uchiha Madara…" The sudden silence in the room was almost palpable as some even started trembling. Uchiha Madara was perhaps the strongest ninja of his time, next to the Shodaime Hokage, Senju Hashirama. And to believe that the same man is here amongst them right now was quite impossible to imagine. Tsunade, for her part, knew the man from her childhood, the man to whom her grandfather considered his friend and rival at the same time. He was responsible for the village's foundation and founder of the powerful Uchiha Clan.

Madara counted on this feeling before he revealed his ultimate plan.

"I can see that all of you trust my words to be authentic, as I don't have reasons to lie at this point. Now, it's time to reveal what the Akatsuki's main goal is." Madara managed the room's attention as he began his history lesson. "A long time ago, the Rikudou Sennin came to these lands, preaching about peace in the midst of chaos that ruled. As some of you know, though some consider the man to be only a legend, the Rikudou Sennin was the founder of the ninja arts we so proudly use. A certain time, he faced the almighty ten tailed beast called Juubi. Even to some as powerful as the Rikudou Sennin, killing the beast was next to impossible. Therefore, he used every available power he had and sealed the beast inside his own body. Fearing that with his death the beast would escape, the Rikudou Sennin decided to split the Juubi's power amongst nine parts, hence the creation of the tailed beasts we all know and fear."

He stopped a little bit so that the information was slowly being digested by everyone.

"Therefore, with the powers of the tailed beasts gathered together, it will be within my reach to bring the Juubi back to life and become its jinchuuriki. With it, I'll have the power to control everyone. In order words, everything will become one through me. Once I possess the Juubi's power, I'll have access to this world's most powerful genjutsu called Mugen Tsukyomi. With it, I plan to obtain total piece." Now that the truth was out in the open, people were too speechless to be asking questions, though some in the room had their doubts at the plan.

"Real peace is a dream many revolutionaries shared. So far, none of them managed it. What makes yours different?" It was Kakashi's voice that broke the silence.

"Quite true, Sharingan Kakashi. However where others failed, I'll succeed. As of right now, I declare the start of the Fourth Great Ninja War!" Said Madara, before he and Pein vanished from the vicinity.

Afterward, a good ten minutes of silence ruled as everyone started pondering of the implications behind such a declaration. Gaara was the one that voiced everyone's concern, though.

"It's imperative that we guard the only remaining Jinchuuriki, for it's the only thing separating Madara from achieving his plan…" Although it was an understatement, everyone in the room approved the motion, before the Raikage raised from his chair.

"Let this be this alliance's first mission together. Each one of us will assign one of our bodyguards to retrieve the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki and bring him here where we can later decide his protection arrangements"

Everyone nodded while Kakashi and Tsunade wondered how Naruto would react once he learned that once more he would have to be taken off active duty. In little less than five minutes, the five assembled shinobi stood outside the castle. Kakashi, knowing where Naruto was, or at least where he should be, was declared the leader followed by the Raikage's sensor-type ninja named Shii. Temari from the Sand and Kurotsuchi from the Rock also joined. Last but not least, Ao, the Mizukage's bodyguard, was behind them as he also was a sensor and a hunter ninja just like Naruto.

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

Not knowing about the decision made at the meeting, Naruto and Mangetsu marched towards a random location. The day was surprisingly cloudy today as if gray spider webs covered the sky.

While walking, Naruto was busy flipping over the pages of his bingo book, making relaxing noises with his throat, much to both Mangetsu and Kyuubi's irritation, since both tended to possess akin hearing senses. While flipping through pages, Naruto would get images of his fight against said missing-nin. Some were tough, others not so much. The book on his hand represented his career as a shinobi and how it progressed as he marked the pages with red X, meaning the criminal was either captured or killed. His focus landed on an interesting foe, before he was interrupted.

"So…Naruto" Mangetsu spoke, before Naruto took away his attention from the book and looked at his canine companion. "Did you choose who is next or are we just walking around?"

"I just found an interesting one to chase. Her name is most peculiar, considering her skills and crimes committed. Nagoyaka Kusabana (gentle flower) is an A-ranked criminal kunoichi with large experience in explosive seals and deadly traps. According to the bingo book, the woman used a simple escorting mission assigned by the Sandaime Hokage towards the Fire Capital as leverage to rob a bank. She had succeeded in her endeavor, but a few weeks later, she ran away when the Head of Torture and Interrogation Morino Ibiki unraveled the truth and came after her. Now, she is a freelancer kunoichi with just as dirty clients on her payroll." After the explanation, the conversation ended as Naruto, once more, returned to his relaxing tunes, while studying the woman's location.

According to his bingo book, Kusabana was usually spotted near Fang Country, at the capital city.

At times, he wondered how the Hunter-nin Commander managed to gather so much information about the missing-ninjas. But then again the man must have a spying network as good if not better than Jiraiya's, so it wasn't so surprising. He has never been to Fang Country before, but from his map, he calculated that he would need at least a day to get there. He didn't remember much about the country, though. Only that it didn't have a ninja village, so he shouldn't be concerned with someone spotting him. Not that he feared having to fight someone, but as a hunter ninja from Konohagakure, he couldn't simply march in the country and start asking questions. Besides, the bingo book had a very vivid description of the woman, who despite being in her forties, was quite the looker. Besides the vicious smirk on her face and the fact that the woman likes to blow things up for a living, Naruto would be hard pressed not to flirt with her.

He was taken, though. So, he would settle for her head, instead. Good looking or not, she was an A-ranked criminal.

* * *

**===At Konoha===**

Shikamaru and Shino could say that neither was on friendly terms with one another. They only hanged out together when the old class reunited and even that rarely happened anymore. Shikamaru was a jounin and now member of the second version of the Ino-Shika-Cho Team. Shino was an Anbu captain. It was safe to say that even co-op missions were a rare event. Despite it all, the two shared one bond, although temporary. Both were nominated by their classmates as the ones who would decide on Uchiha Sasuke's fate based on his transgressions.

The problem was that both were scheduled to give their answers to the Hokage almost two weeks ago and so far, no verdict was reached.

Shikamaru, despite being a seasoned jounin, still felt it was quite a troublesome task to think of stuff like this, while Shino wanted his classmates' consent to his choice. Shino ended up taking Naruto's words to heart and decided on sentencing Sasuke to death for his actions. Needless to say, he found a strong opposition mainly from the women department. Even though they considered Sasuke guilty, none of them were too comfortable with the idea of simply ending the Uchiha's life. Whether they didn't want to live with such conscience, Shino didn't know. All he knew, since his childhood to his time at the Anbu department, revolved around logic. In Sasuke's case, it was pure logic. He betrayed the hidden village in the leaves by siding with one of Konoha's most vicious criminals alive. That alone granted him an S-ranked bounty on his head. The death penalty was the only logical choice.

Still, he just wished that people would give him the go-ahead so that he could stop thinking about this manner and move on. Even to a stoic Aburame, it was becoming annoying.

"Troublesome…I'm actually starting to believe it was best if Naruto never captured that prick in the first place. That way, I wouldn't need to worry about this."

It was a known fact amongst the two, who was responsible for both Sasuke and Itachi's capture. However, since only Shino and Shikamaru were nominated for the decision, the Hokage thought best only to tell them about it. Shino already knew, because Naruto himself told him, when they chatted a couple days ago. Shikamaru, though, wasn't surprised or at least found it too troublesome to act surprised. Nevertheless, his position was the same as Shino's. Although, he half considered sealing the one thing Sasuke was most proud of, his Sharingan Eyes.

"Be that as it may, we still have Sasuke's fate do decide. By this time, it's clear to both of us that a mutual consent will never be reached. At least, one of the girls will believe that Sasuke doesn't deserve it."

Shikamaru was considered the best tactician amongst his group, even rumoring to top his father, who was Konoha's Head of Strategy in times of war. However, he always knew that Shino wasn't far behind him. The logical way of thinking runs inside his veins, so it would be only logical to assume that Shino was just as good a tactician as Shikamaru was. As such, he already knew the answer to a suitable punishment for Sasuke. And as Shino said, at least one of the girls would believe that he didn't deserve it. He wouldn't be killed, though.

"I guess we can ask both Neji and Hinata to permanently shut his tenketsus as well as seal off his Sharingan for good. That way, he would no longer have access to his chakra or his Sharingan." Shino concurred.

"I guess it's the best thing to do, considering the circumstances. I bet Naruto would disagree, but seeing his latest achievements, I wouldn't be surprised if he did everything in his power to kill the Uchiha." Shikamaru smirked at the comment, as he remembered the comments amongst his fellow jounins. A hunter-nin was cleaning the bingo book, non-stop. Naruto's sensei Kakashi often spoke in private with Shikamaru about his blond student's exploits. And while some of them sounded a bit too rough, considering it was Naruto they were talking about, none could deny it was effective.

With the decision finally made, both marched towards the Hokage's Tower, in order to deliver their decision. It would be routine procedure to run the idea with the others first. However, both Shikamaru and Shino knew that it wouldn't solve anything and they would have to go back to square one. At least, with their choice, Sasuke can be free, after a few years in prison of course, without his usual power. Hell, Sasuke was one of the best in taijutsu; he could still become a shinobi with taijutsu alone. An amusing thought, Shikamaru considered. Imagining the last of the Uchiha Clan reduced to nothing but plain martial arts.

* * *

**===At the Hokage's Office===**

Jiraiya, contrary to what most everyone thought, often wondered how it was to seat behind the most powerful desk in Konohagakure. Both his sensei and his student often spoke the same thing. Just the thought of seating behind the desk and knowing that pretty much everyone in the village depended on the Hokage was maybe the most overwhelming feeling. Sending ninjas to death assignments, already knowing they would never return was only the tip of the iceberg in a Kage's duty. With all these expectations, Jiraiya wondered why none of them ever bitched about signing these damn release forms that now stood in front of him.

He remembered Tsunade always complaining about it, but in her case, pretty much everything irritated her. His sensei and his student were level headed individuals.

As soon as Shizune walked inside with new missions piles, she saw the man acting just like her master did upon her arrival with _more paper. _Often times, she wondered why Tsunade-sama and Jiraiya-sama weren't a couple yet. They even complained about the same thing. The only difference between the two, and Shizune thanked the heavens for it, was that with Jiraiya she never bothered to check for hidden bottles of sake beneath the desk or either hidden by a storage seal, located beneath the first cabinet. She left the papers next to the other mission assignments while Jiraiya started cursing Tsunade for picking him up for this, instead of maybe Hiashi or even Shikaku. A knock on the door alerted the two, before Shikamaru and Shino entered.

Jiraiya looked up and smirked, since he knew what these two wanted to talk about.

"So it took you two quite a bit of time to decide. You were supposed to give Tsunade the answer two weeks ago. May I inquire what punishment are you giving poor little Sasuke-kun?"

The two exchanged looks between each other, most to see who would be the one to say it. Shikamaru released a sigh in contempt and took a step forward.

"We decided on a five year imprisonment. Also, his chakra tenketsus would have to be sealed off permanently by an experienced Hyuuga"

Jiraiya instantly frowned at the answer, though that was just for intimidation purposes. Truth was that Tsunade never meant to kill the boy. Sure, he sided with Orochimaru for petty reasons such as revenge, but taking away his life seemed like a minor punishment compared to what these two came up with. He tried hiding the smirk, but he figured the same amusing thought as Shikamaru did. An Uchiha with no access to chakra whatsoever and no Sharingan eyes to gloat about; it would be quite humorous, that's for sure. Finally, he showed a smile on his face, which relaxed Shikamaru and Shino' stance a bit.

"Indeed, killing him would be nothing compared to what your devious minds conjured. I'll take care of the proper paperwork and, then, call for either Neji or Hiashi to perform the ceremony"

Seeing that their presence was no longer needed, Shikamaru and Shino turned and left, before Jiraiya started reading the mission assignments and remembering the ninjas at his disposal to be assigned.

"Shikamaru…" Jiraiya screamed, getting the jounin's attention, before he threw an A-ranked mission scroll. The jounin caught and opened the scroll, as he began to read. "It's witness protection mission for your team. Your priority is the protection of a witness inside the Fire Lord's Castle. I bet you already knew what happened inside the castle two weeks ago. This man witnessed everything and agreed to testify at the Fire Lord's Courtroom. Problem is none of his samurai could be assigned to do it, so he asked us. The possible targets are all written on that scroll, good day…"

The Nara heir frowned at the mission, but nodded. He knew from his father that a higher official was murdered inside the Fire Lord's castle.

Probably this witness confided to the Fire Lord's personal assistant and the man convinced the Daimyou to arrange some protection until the witness could testify who the murderer was.

Still, Shikamaru at least now had an excuse to focus on something else other than Sasuke's punishment, in case Ino found out about the final choice.

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

Oblivious to the fact that his wish wouldn't be granted regarding Sasuke, Naruto was busy focusing on his next pray, as he conjured any available information there was to know about the missing-nin from the bingo book. While this was happening, Mangetsu was busy scratching herself in order to deal with a dog's worst enemy of all, flees. The female dog learned that when it came to hunting missing-ninjas, Naruto managed to transform it into an art of some sort. Everything was planned ahead and everything was accounted for. It was actually impressive, the level of dedication showed by the hunter-nin.

Mangetsu, though, was just happy to be by his side, helping him in every way possible, to rid Konoha of criminals.

When Naruto placed the bingo book inside his jacket, the dog looked at him, since it knew that Naruto already managed to think of a way to beat the A-ranked missing-nin traps expert. Suddenly, Naruto opened his map and looked at the horizon, in order to grasp the distance needed to cover, before they reached Fang Country. While pondering on the distance, Naruto also used part of his brain in order to think of the woman's weakness. The thing with traps was that they were almost deadly against a single enemy, however against an army, she would most certainly lose. She may hit five enemies, even ten, but she wouldn't have much artillery against say an entire platoon. Said weakness was only exploitable by a shinobi who had enough chakra to replicate himself multiple times and Naruto had that in spades. However, the Kage Bunshin, the Rasengan and the Kuchiyose no Jutsu were obvious techniques and anyone with a few knowledge on his past experiences, would find out his identity. He had to think of something else…

"Let's go Mangetsu, let's go fast until we reach the border of Fang Country. Afterward, we'll return to walking…"

* * *

**===With Jiraiya===**

After assigning the missions to the respective ninjas, Jiraiya figured he could already take care of Sasuke's punishment, thus alleviating Tsunade from another headache. Surprisingly so, with her gone, their sensei's old teammates had yet to show their faces. This meant that Jiraiya could carry on Sasuke's punishment without being interrupted, or even thinking about future consequences. It would be quite infuriating if he appeared in front of Sasuke's prison only for Homura to stop him with some pathetic excuse that the Uchiha blood must be preserved for the village's welfare.

As if Konoha wasn't considered the strongest village even after Itachi killed his clan.

Seeing as the coast was clear, he went to the Hyuuga Compound and conversed with Hiashi, regarding Sasuke's punishment. The perverted sannin was in search of a skilled clan member that would seal Sasuke's chakra without killing him. It may not seem difficult, but simply blocking one's chakra was a lot tougher than the usual jyuuken strike, meant to kill the enemy. The Hyuuga needed to find the right amount of tenketsus that were responsible for maintaining the chakra flow and disable them. That would only happen once the Hyuuga managed to study Sasuke's chakra network thoroughly. In the end, Hiashi gave the name of a Hyuuga kunoichi, named Tatsumi. She was considered the most perfectionist amongst the main branch members and was considered by the other members as a master in human anatomy. The only one that could rival her in precise jyuuken strikes was Neji, but he used it to incapacitate his opponents and she was a medic-nin.

So, Jiraiya and Tatsumi were now in front of Ibiki as they met in front of Sasuke's cell.

Even though the Hyuuga kunoichi was older than Neji and Hinata, her looks were enough to put every kunoichi half her age to shame. Her hair was the same color as Hinata's, but her body was perfect, Jiraiya could say as he checked the woman out maybe two or three times, giggling like a no good pervert he was. Contrary to other Hyuugas, Tatsumi was more similar to Anko Mitarashi in terms of thinking that the fewer clothes, the better. Her voluptuous breasts barely fitted inside her white jounin vest and a sleeveless fishnet top. Besides that, nothing much was there to notice except that she wore dark blue shorts that barely passed her knees.

"I see that those two finally reached a decision, Jiraiya-sama?" Ibiki asked, as he opened the door to Sasuke's cell. Jiraiya, for his part, nodded as he allowed the lady to enter first, before he got inside, closing the door right afterward.

Sasuke opened his eyes and turned to the sudden noise created by the door. He frowned a bit, knowing that this day would come eventually. He was not ignorant to the fact that his act caused dire repercussions. He knew that something bad would happen to him, when he saw Jiraiya smiling the entire time. Sasuke was aware that killing was never their intention. He may be a traitor, but he'd never lifted a finger against a Konoha shinobi before, except Naruto, but that was because the blond wanted, desperately, to take him back to Konoha. He supposed it was only natural to assume that right now trusting him with any form of power would be outrageous. And the fact that he saw a Hyuuga alongside Jiraiya meant that in a little while, his chakra would cease to exist completely, meaning that his Sharingan would be non-existent as well.

Despite it all, he didn't dread the outcome of his punishment. Itachi was dead and all he could do after his chakra is sealed is to perfect his taijutsu, nothing more!

"I was hoping that the Hokage would be the one to deliver my punishment, not you" Sasuke heard stories about this Jiraiya from Orochimaru. The one man that always kept coming back, no matter what vile technique the snake used to beat him. In a way, Sasuke envisioned a lot of Naruto in this man, well at least how Naruto used to be. Jiraiya only smirked at the comment directed his way and he couldn't think of a better come back than prying on the Uchiha's never-ending pride, their Sharingan and how in about two minutes, it would cease to exist.

"Tsunade is busy with other affairs right now, so she asked me to take good care of you little Uchiha. I bet you're a smart kid so I don't need to explain what your punishment is going to be. My Hyuuga friend will take good care of your chakra system. Now miss Tatsumi, if you would" Sasuke landed his stoic raven eyes on her pupil-less eyes and like he remembered, her eyes were similar to all of her kind. Cold, menacing…even more so than the Sharingan eyes ever were. When the veins around her eyes expanded, Sasuke just closed his eyes, taking a minute to say goodbye to the one thing that never abandoned him, his Sharingan eyes, the pride of the Uchiha Clan.

As the jyuuken strikes began, Sasuke let out a violent scream at the pain he was feeling.

* * *

**===One day later===**

With great speed, Naruto and Mangetsu reached the border of Fang Country. From here, they were walking. The capital city was just a few miles away, so when he arrived, he could ask some questions. The scenery here was quite peculiar, he reasoned. A great load of fang looking mountains filled the horizon. Also, he could see a great load of rivers. By now, the once clouded sky opened a sizeable hole, allowing a nice bath of sunlight. Looking at Mangetsu, he realized that the dog was quite tired from their trip. In front of them, was a little stream where Mangetsu could drink some water, while Naruto prepared her lunch as he thought of his plan so far.

The bingo book didn't give much to work on, regarding her location. He knew, though, that the ones who hired her were from the black market.

It meant that his hopes would rise if he managed to interrogate someone and find out where her next mission will be. After Mangetsu returned by his side, they continued walking until the capital city appeared on the horizon. The city was covered by the same mountains that he saw upon crossing the border. A great load of rivers crossed the city and even some houses were built on top of it. Not wasting any more time, he walked inside the first bar, henged as some low life mercenary wearing a black eye-patch, which covered his right eye. His hair was black and his whisker marks gone. Even Mangetsu transformed, though no one would know her. At this time, it was almost lunch time, so the bar was quite crowded with civilians and even some low-level thugs screaming with each other and drinking like maniacs. Naruto walked through the crowded tables and took a sit right in front of the bar as he landed his sword right in front of the bartender. It had the desired effect as the man focused his attention on Naruto instantly.

"How can I help you foreigner?"

"Some sake, please" The bartender nodded as he grabbed a bottle of their finest from Earth Country and poured some for Naruto.

"I was looking for someone and I was hoping you could help me…" Naruto said, as he drank the entire glass like it was nothing.

The bartender poured some more as he looked at Naruto's henged face for a minute, as in trying to figure if perhaps Naruto wouldn't hesitate in killing him.

"Maybe I can help you. Do you have a name?" The bartender said, before showed him a picture.

"Her name is Nagoyaka Kusabana, A-ranked missing-nin from a village called Konohagakure."

As soon as Naruto said the name, unsurprisingly so, the entire bar was suddenly silent. Naruto figured it was routine, considering that anyone measuring up to Kakashi-sensei's level was threatening to say the least. Even the thugs that were enjoying themselves now looked at Naruto like he was the enemy. It all changed, though, when the blond narrowed his only visible eye and focused some chakra directed at them in a menacing manner. Immediately, they paid their bill and left the premises. Naruto turned to the bartender and waited for an answer. He could tell the subtle change in mood from the man, thus he knew that the man knew something about Kusabana.

"Okay old man, let's start talking…oh and more sake, it's quite tasty." Naruto's hand reached for his sword, before the bartender pleaded with him not to kill him.

"I don't know where to find her, but I know someone who does…"

"Any information would suffice."

"Rumors are this man is like an agent of sorts for criminals. Kusabana goes to him for missions." Naruto smiled and immediately went to thinking. By following this booking agent of sorts, he would eventually find Kusabana's location and fight her once and for all.

"Okay old man, you seem to know a lot about this man, so tell me what you know about him and where can I find him. Oh and while we're at it, do you serve any ramen here, I'm starving. After I'm satisfied, I'm leaving a very sizeable tip. That is, if I'm satisfied with the answer you supply me" The bartender nodded, before going to the back and handing Naruto's ramen order. He came back and served more sake, which Naruto greatly appreciated. Once Naruto ate his ramen, he left the bar and vanished within a shunshin together with Mangetsu.

According to the bartender, this agent guy always hung around a specific back alley close to the Daimyou's mansion. While the bartender didn't say his name, he gave his description. Spiky black hair, weird shaped head and wears a gray over-sized coat. Somehow, the description sounded familiar to Naruto, but he couldn't quite place it. He had to be fast, though, because the man usually sticks around maybe ten or twenty minutes for Kusabana to appear, if not, he leaves. As soon as he landed on the rooftop a couple meters from the location, he saw the man described by the bartender. He was just standing there doing nothing. From now on, he needed to wait. If he was there, then he was expecting Kusabana to arrive any minute now.

"**May I suggest that you use something to hide your presence, Naruto. He may not realize you're spying on him, but no doubt one like Kakashi would." **

It has been a while since Kyuubi spoke, hence why it spooked the hunter-nin a bit. Naruto, though, didn't know any genjutsu techniques. It's something that he planned on learning in the future. The way in which he was positioned could easily shadow his presence, but that would only happen if Kusabana came from the other side of the alley. However, any seasoned jounin would be aware of his presence, hence why the blond tried every bit of control he had into lowering his chakra capacity. This way, if the woman senses him, she will probably think that it's just some civilian or a genin shinobi.

Just like the bartender said, Naruto's target appeared soon afterward and like he suspected, wary of a foreign presence. After waiting a few more minutes, she backed out and started her conversation with the agent. Naruto knew that from his position, he couldn't hear anything. His plan was to identify the woman more in terms of determining her location. And if his eyes weren't playing tricks on him, the photo displayed inside the bingo book did the woman very little justice. She was even more beautiful with tight light blue shinobi wear that would top any woman Jiraiya could ever hope to describe in his novels. From what he could see, shinobi wise, she didn't appear like much. No visible weapons could be seen, however she could very well have hidden them within scrolls or something. Her presence stood out as peculiar in Naruto's opinion. It was like she knew someone was there watching her, if her eyes looking around were any indication.

After ten minutes, she left the place the same time Naruto left his position. He was fortunate that Mangetsu was near him, because now his companion memorized her scent. He told Mangetsu to stay put, before vanishing.

The agent decided to light a cigarette, confident that the job would be performed without drawbacks. Kusabana was as skilled as the money needed to hire her, thus this time it was guaranteed that the job would be complete. The man blinked once, which proved to be his last mistake. When he opened, his mind registered one big sword placed mere inches from his throat. Before he even knew what happened, a hand grabbed his hair forcefully. He realized with dread that whoever it was behind him began to slightly bend his neck towards the blade, causing the man to shiver in fear for his life.

"Do not scream; do not cry for help, for it will be your last breath here on Earth. I want to know what you told Kusabana. It was a job? I want to hear everything…" Naruto brought the sword a centimeter closer for him to realize Naruto was serious.

"Who are you and why are you after her?" Every second passed was like torment to this poor man, whose only job was to hire missing-ninjas for his clients.

"You let me worry about my intentions. You should worry about satisfying my curiosity; otherwise your throat will suffer because of your stupidity. What did you tell her?" After the forced question, Naruto even focused some chakra to scare the man into believing he'd actually do it. Still, it proved adequate as the man instantly begged for his life, before spilling everything he knew about Kusabana and her future location in four hours. According to the man, she was hired to assassinate the Daimyou's Head of Security. He was scheduled to arrive through the forest where Naruto came from at night. The blond wasn't much worried about the Daimyou's Head of Security, but he was about fighting the girl at night. It was risky to fight a traps expert without the aid of the sun. Nevertheless, Kusabana wasn't the type of person who would stick around after her job was done.

She would flee right afterward, which meant that he would have to stop this assassination from happening.

* * *

**===Fang Country's Border===**

After speeding a bit, Naruto and Mangetsu managed to reach the place where Kusabana would kill the country's head of security. So far, nothing of the sort was visible. The moonlight helped a bit, but they couldn't see much with it. Still, Naruto figured that Kusabana's target would have at least a couple of samurais tailing him for his safety. That meant that Naruto would, soon, hear horses approaching. He and Mangetsu began their travel once more, throughout the dense woods.

His brain started to wonder about the possible path, in order to foresee his actions as much as possible.

The forest he was now in was very dense and didn't allow a carriage to pass by so easily. Actually, there was only one path available and that would be the one he was looking down upon. With that, he was now able to narrow down the possible locations for the attack. Kusabana wouldn't attack the man close to the border, since it would attract the border guard's attention. As a shinobi, she would be obligated to deal with the country's head of security before the carriage appeared at the border guard's line of sight. Looking at Mangetsu, he saw that it was sniffing around. Naruto figured that it wouldn't take much time before Kusabana's position was found.

"Naruto, I found her scent. A couple of meters to our right." The blond nodded, before they vanished once more via shunshin.

When they appeared once more, Naruto started hiding behind a thick tree as he spotted his target placing what appeared to be exploding tags on specific parts of the forest. That was precisely her expertise; he thought as he remembered what the bingo book said about her. It would be an easy kill and easier exit strategy. When the target appeared within range, she would activate the exploding tags from a reasonable distance. Both the explosion and the three remnants would crush the samurais to death as well as the carriage with the head of security inside. Also, since none of them are ninja, she could just flee the scene from the trees and vanish without anyone knowing what happened. Such an attack was useless against shinobi, hence why Kusabana limited her attacks to countries without ninja support.

He figured that now was a good time to strike when she was busy.

Kusabana finished planting the last exploding tag, before her danger sense warned her to get away from there. Her senses proved correct as a dozen of kunais and shurikens flew towards her out of the blue. So engrossed in her target she was, that she forgot to cover her tracks. She didn't finish her train of thought as a man with black clothes and a hunter-nin mask appeared out of a sudden with a katana strike, ready to slice her in two. Quickly grabbing a ninjato, which was hidden inside a seal imprinted on her wrist, she managed to block Naruto's strike. However, the hunter's attack carried such strength that she was sent flying. Immediately, Naruto picked a couple more shurikens and kunais and threw at her, before going through hand seals.

_**Fuuton Reppushou**__ (Wind Release: Gale Wind Palm Technique) _

The wind technique propelled the projectiles towards Kusabana, who still in midair, couldn't dodge in time. When Naruto saw a pierced log in her place, his eyes began scanning the place for her whereabouts. Suddenly, three kunais flew at him from his blind spot, carrying seals along with it. Naruto instantly jumped away from the kunais, assuming that the seals were exploding tags. However, when Kusabana activated them, he saw his mistake as a powerful sound reached his ears, forcing him to use his hands in a pathetic attempt to stop his ears from hurting so much. Even though the pain was unbearable, the blond took the time to berate himself from assuming things against a person of her level. An exploding tag would alert the samurais and would endanger her mission. Despite the pain, he could see the woman on the verge of killing him, before Naruto focused enough wind chakra that he created a vacuum around his body.

With it, he managed a few seconds more to get over his bearings, as Kusabana was stopped by the force of wind. Naruto managed to land a fierce kick on her stomach and was about to continue the sequence, but had to block a fast sequence of punches, all of it aimed at his face. As he blocked, he could feel that the woman was adding chakra to the attacks. Quickly blocking the last punch, he used brute strength and grabbed her clothes, before throwing the woman a few inches. Afterwards, he grabbed his katana and charged once more. Kusabana, though, managed to land on a tree with enough time to get her bearings, before Naruto appeared.

The noise of swords continued, until both spotted upon hearing horses approaching.

Kusabana cursed the hunter-nin's existence, before throwing some smoke bombs on the ground. Naruto was caught by surprise, but Mangetsu was close by and stopped Kusabana from fleeing, using the Tsuuga technique. The tornado also served to expel the smoke bomb, allowing Naruto to attack her once more, as he started a sequence of hand seals.

_**Fuuton Eatama no Jutsu**__ (Wind Release: Air Bullet Technique)_

Kusabana managed to dodge the deadly technique in time, by hiding behind a tree, but upon inspecting the damage, she realized how close to death she was. By now, her target already was already inside Fang Country, which meant that she failed her mission. Right now, though, her life was more important. The hunter-nin was good, but so were the others who thought they could mess with her, just because she was a woman. While hiding and knowing that the hunter-nin was about to strike, she began her own series of hand seals, before gathering water inside her lungs.

_**Suiton Taihoudan**__ (Water Release: Large Projectile Technique)_

Naruto was caught dead on and was sent flying. Using the opportunity, Kusabana began molding her chakra for her most powerful technique. This hunter-nin was good, no doubt about that. But no one survived against said technique. She saw that the hunter-nin managed to escape her water jutsu, but her plan accounted such a possibility. She just wanted a couple of seconds to mold her chakra the way it was supposed to. As soon as Naruto escaped from the water projectile, he froze on top of a tree log as in front of him, was Kusabana. Except that right now, she was naked and every hormone inside his body was begging him to go and have his way with her. His body started trembling in excitement. He didn't know what happened to him, but every cell inside his body was carving for a piece of her flesh. Her body was exceptional. Without knowing, he placed one foot in front of the other, like he was hypnotized by the enemy.

This was Kusabana's most powerful technique. Almost no man could resist her genjutsu. With her chakra, she could invade the enemy's chakra system and increase the level of pheromones. And placing an image inside the man's brain of her naked form was enough to control every man. That's why no hunter-nin ever managed to escape from her grasp. And this hunter-nin, although proficient in tai, nin and kenjutsu, wasn't skilled enough to dispel A-ranked illusions. The only man whoever managed to break her illusion was Uchiha Itachi, though at the time, she just used it in order to get in bed with him.

Quickly unleashing her ninjato, she charged at the hypnotized hunter-nin.

"**Naruto, you imbecile; she's trapped you in a genjutsu, wake the hell** **up**" Kyuubi's voice roared inside his mind with such ferocity that the blond opened his eyes instantly, before dispelling the genjutsu just as Kusabana's sword came inches of his body. However, Mangetsu came to the rescue, aiming another Tsuuga at both Naruto and Kusabana. With it, she managed to save Naruto, who was still suffering the after effects of an A-ranked genjutsu. Looking at the woman, he was battling hard in order to erase the sexy images inside his mind.

"How the hell were you able to dispel my genjutsu? You looked like a marionette a few seconds ago." Her shout was the catalyst to waking him up as he looked at her now fully dressed.

"I'm not here to discuss techniques with you. You're a criminal and will perish by my sword."

_Kyuubi, give me your power, with it I won't be influenced by her genjutsu…_

The woman noticed the spike in chakra capacity as well as the malice coming from the hunter-nin. She saw, with a knowing dread, the red aura that surrounded the blond. She knew from memory this feeling. At the time, she was only a genin under the Yondaime Hokage. However, anyone would vouch for her that a power as vile as the Kyuubi no Yoko would be forever imprinted in her memory. She now remembered how the Yondaime Hokage saved the village by sealing the fox inside a baby. Now, standing in front of her, was the man who housed the power of the strongest bijuu in existence.

"You're the Jinchuuriki, aren't you?"

The question surprised Naruto, but he guessed that the woman must have been old enough to remember that fateful day. Nevertheless, she continued talking and Naruto could feel some trepidation on her voice "you are the one the Yondaime sealed the beast inside. I remember you, now. You were that boy who would always get into trouble for the pranks. I wouldn't imagine that you managed to harvest the fox's chakra" That feeling of malice retuned tenfold and the nightmares that stopped a long time ago resurfaced. She heard shouts of her friends being killed by the beast's chakra alone. She heard her father being violently murdered by the beast's claws, while its laughter echoed insider her brain. By now, she feared for her life. She tried backing away as Naruto stepped forward, while grabbing his sword and igniting it on fire.

The woman was scared shitless right now. He could see her pupils dilating at the prospect of being killed by the Kyuubi no Yoko. A long time ago, he accepted the fact that he was the fox's jinchuuriki. He accepted the burden of keeping the one responsible for murdering half of the village's population inside his stomach. The woman was now on the ground as she crawled towards a tree, feeling cornered like a dead prey. The blond wondered why she was feeling this way. It was like the woman was having a mental breakdown in front of him. He sighed in dismay and realized that this battle was over. With a swift swing from his flaming sword, he decapitated Kusabana as her blood was splattered all over his clothes.

This was the scene that Kakashi's co-op team saw upon arriving. Kumo's sensor ninja felt the demon chakra and guided them towards the location. Temari, for her part upon looking at Naruto, instantly remembered the guy who helped Suna against a missing ninja. Never in a million years, would she guess that Naruto was the hunter-nin. To believe that she even fantazied about the man. Naruto was instantly alerted, before he saw Kakashi in front of a group of shinobis from the other hidden villages. Last time he saw the man, he was guarding the Hokage towards Iron Country.

"What are you doing here, Kakashi? And why there are ninjas from other villages with you?"

"I'll give you all the answers Naruto, but I'm afraid you must come with us…Hokage's orders."

Looking at each one of the group, Naruto knew that it would be quite stupid of him to do otherwise. As he went through the procedure of sealing Kusabana's head and burning the body, he knew that once more his freedom would be taken away from him.

* * *

**Author Note**

Ok that's it for now. If someone is curious about the theory behind the Rikudou Sennin's sons, I figured it would be useless, seeing as Sasuke's Sharingan is right now sealed. Now, Naruto will be protected as right now, he is the only one standing between Madara and his goal to revive the Juubi. How will he take it, being caged once more? Check it out next chapter.

I want to take this opportunity and thank everyone for reviewing my stories. Believe it or not, all of you helped me with the excellent ideas and the helpful criticism. I also wanted to say thank you to my beta Kyuubi123 for doing this amazing favor of reviewing my stories.

Thank you all so much.


	22. The path of the hunternin

**Author Note**

Hello there and welcome to another chapter of my Hunter-nin story.

As some of you remembered, last chapter Naruto managed to add a new A-ranked missing-nin to his list of achievements, before he encountered Kakashi once more, together with four shinobi from the rest great hidden villages. Their mission was to find him and bring him to Tetsu no Kuni **(Iron Country) **so that he could be protected from the Akatsuki, of course, not him but the beast residing inside his stomach. It's within the newly formed alliance's best interest to protect Naruto at all costs, seeing as the Kyuubi was the only tailed beast that wasn't captured by the terrible organization now formed by Pein, Madara and Zetsu.

Now, everyone is wondering how he'll react upon getting caged once more.

Check it out…

* * *

**Chapter 22 – The path of the hunternin**

**Beta: Kyuubi123**

* * *

So far, the first co-op mission was a success.

The team formed by all five of the hidden villages had one single objective. Find the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki and bring him to Tetsu no Kuni (Iron Country) where the newly formed alliance could decide what to do with him, as well as provide better protection against the Akatsuki. That was the reason given to Naruto by Kakashi as the six ninjas ran towards their destination as fast as possible. It wouldn't bode well for them if one Akatsuki agent appeared out of a sudden. Being the only one who knew Naruto, as more than just the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki, Hatake Kakashi stood by his ex-student the entire time alongside Naruto's dog companion, though not once did Naruto turn to question him regarding anything, nor did he express any form of dissatisfaction with the situation at hand. Ever since he became a hunter-nin, Naruto became much more reserved towards anyone. He doubted if even his girlfriend Hana knew everything about Naruto now and this worried him.

He knew that Naruto wouldn't accept the situation bestowed upon him by the alliance.

However, seeing as he had yet to hear any form of complaint from the blond, Kakashi wondered if Naruto was bottling everything up, instead. Such behavior wasn't healthy and he wished that the blond would trust him to talk about it. Soon, the group crossed Iron Country's territory as the temperature dropped considerably. The five ninjas of the mission were already used to it, but the blond didn't show any hint of surprise at the change of scenery nor the decrease in temperature. His canine companion didn't either. Eventually, the grand castle appeared in front of him as Naruto observed the army of samurai throughout the vicinity, looking at them. The group stopped in front of the castle's entrance before one samurai opened it. As soon as they entered inside the room where the kages were, the bodyguards returned to the upper levels, leaving Naruto and Mangetsu alone to face the five most powerful ninjas of their respective villages. He nodded briefly at Tsunade, but remained silent with his arms crossed as he waited for any kind of order coming from either one of the other four kages. The silence allowed him time to observe them a little bit.

He knew which village they represented, because of the flags behind them. Firstly, the Tsuchikage or rather the midget form of him as far as Naruto as concerned. He was the only one at the table, apart from Tsunade, that knew who his father was, though Naruto wondered if the man knew that the one who attempted the chunnin exams was the person wearing the hunter-nin mask. From the neutral look on his face, Naruto believed that Onoki hadn't realized his identity yet. He didn't need to observe the Kazekage, hence why his eyes landed on the Raikage for a brief second. The man's stature was impressive and quite threatening, but usually with size comes lack in speed. Lastly, the Mizukage was a woman, a very beautiful one. She was smirking at him and for some reason, he wondered about the reason behind her smiling at a stranger. Of course, he didn't know that she was checking him out from head to toe. Suddenly, the Raikage got up from his seat and addressed the hunter-nin.

"Kyuubi no Jinchuuriki, this meeting prohibits the use of masks. Please remove it so that we can proceed." The look on the Raikage's face indicated that his request was more of an order to be fulfilled. However, the blond remained with his arms crossed as he was a registered shinobi of Konohagakure and only one person could order him to remove his mask. Of course, the Raikage wouldn't see his reason, but that wasn't his problem. Plus Naruto didn't enjoy how the man addressed him. Seeing as the jinchuuriki had yet to remove his mask, the Raikage's patience was beginning to waver. "Is there a problem with what I said? Remove your mask this instant" A snort was heard from within the mask, which infuriated the Raikage. In fact, both Kumo jounins shared their master's anger at the response.

"Only one has the authority to demand such a thing and it isn't you Raikage-sama. Also, my identity is to remain a secret as expected from every hunter ninja or Anbu level shinobi." Despite the seriousness of the situation, both Gaara and Tsunade smirked at the blond. Naruto's lack of respect for authority was known by both of them. Also, in their frank opinion, Naruto was right. Only Tsunade had the authority to order her shinobi around. The Raikage was over-stepping his authority. From his angered face, though, it was clear that he had a different opinion. However, before he opened his mouth, Tsunade was right ahead of him.

"Raikage-dono, his identity is irrelevant to you. As he said, only I'm privy to said information." The Raikage snarled at her for some time, before clearing his throat.

"The threat posed by the Akatsuki forced this alliance to decide for your protection rather than your participation at the war as I'm sure you already have been briefed. Akatsuki's final goal is to use the power of the nine bijuus, thus bringing a new tailed beast called Juubi." Naruto heard a snarl coming from inside him and he wondered why this name was so threatening to the fox. "As such, I have chosen a suitable location for you, which was approved by the rest kages. Each village will choose two high level shinobi that will accompany you. This war is too important for the shinobi life created by our ancestors and keeping the Kyuubi from the Akatsuki's grasp is our main goal." Immediately, the blond was shaking in rage at the prospect of being confined while others sacrificed their lives for him.

He didn't open his mouth to question anything though, as it wouldn't do him any good.

He understood what he represented in the large scheme of things, thus any form of complaint would fall on death ears. As such, he did something that none of those who knew him inside the room predicted. Gai, Kakashi, Tsunade, Gaara, Kankurou and Temari expected him to be outraged, to scream at everyone at the unfairness of the situation. All of them were even considering stopping him from openly attacking the Raikage for what he said. That's why everyone was speechless when they heard the blond's response regarding his situation. "Ok then, when do I leave?" Kakashi narrowed his eyes at the blond for his passive behavior in spite of being neglected like this. However, like everyone present, he couldn't do much with the situation.

"After this meeting, we'll return to our villages, so that each kage can assign the two jounins. In three days from now, you'll be escorted towards the location."

This item was the last one that needed discussing, so afterwards, the meeting was finished. The Raikage was appointed the leader of the alliance and he would decide his generals who for their part would lead a specific army. They appointed Nara Shukaku, jounin from Konohagakure, to assist the leader regarding the strategy and Inoichi Yamanaka, also from Konoha, in order to relay the orders to the generals. In one week's time, the kages would gather once more in order to decide their first course of action and understand everything they could regarding the enemy. Naruto waited behind the doors as the kages finished the last aspects of the meeting. Afterward, the door opened and the kages left followed by their respective bodyguards. Tsunade, Gai and Kakashi looked at the hunter-nin's back. All three of them wondered what was passing through the boy's head when said ninja turned to look at them.

"I guess we're going home now, aren't we?" Everyone was already gone, except them, so Tsunade used this opportunity to talk to him.

"Naruto, I was hoping that we could talk about this first, but the situation called for it."

"Tsunade-sama, you shouldn't apologize for this. After all, I'm merely a tool to be used." The fact that none of them felt any venom in his words surprised them and even brought fear to the mix. Fear that Naruto truly believed that he was merely a tool to be used. "History has shown that to be true, isn't it? Momochi Zabuza regarded Haku as merely a tool for him to use. Uchiha Itachi, as I recall, was a tool used by the village in order to rid Konoha of the Uchiha Clan. I was chosen to be the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki by my father. Believing otherwise would be foolish. It's my duty to follow the Hokage's orders, no matter what happens." As he spoke, Kakashi could imagine Uchiha Itachi behind his ex-student speaking the same thing. Something inside of him saw truth in what Naruto was saying. Despite what he said to Naruto when they faced Zabuza and Haku, rationally speaking, the shinobis and kunoichis of the village were tools to be used by the Hokage. As an Anbu, he sustained situations that no human being should go through. Nevertheless, he couldn't help but feel that he failed Naruto somehow. Gai was surprisingly silent, but Tsunade was using every bit of her strength in order to control her sadness from being made public.

If it was one thing she regretted more than anything it was to accept Naruto's request to become a hunter-nin. It was too late now. She feared that his will was shattered after following the path of the hunternin. Instead of attempting to convince Naruto otherwise, she just nodded and walked towards the door. Naruto, Kakashi and Gai just followed her. No one spoke to each other throughout the trip towards Konohagakure. And the blond appreciated the silence for once as he engaged in a lively conversation with his tenant, regarding this situation.

"**I must say I was surprised by your response, or lack thereof. Not that I care much. My only question is…do you truly believe in what you just said?"**

'_Given these last occasions, I'm inclined to believe…yes. Of course, I was angered by their decision, but I can't do anything about it, now can I? We don't know much about the leaders of the organization, so there is no guarantee that I'll have any chance to win, if we were to engage. In my opinion, the reason behind this is quite pathetic. Jinchuuriki were and always will be the bane of existence. Now, though, they are so intent in protecting me that it almost made me laugh non-stop. Nevertheless, I'm a ninja from Konoha and as such, I can't do anything against an order.'_

"**In a way, you'll have a lot of time to improve in areas you lack. We could use this time and practice some of those doton techniques as well as improve your knowledge in seals from your father's journal."**

'_I guess you're right…perhaps getting used to more tails of power could increase our strength. I could even begin to understand the art of genjutsu better and adapt high level techniques that require a lot of chakra into our arsenal.'_

"**Very true, then I believe this time off will work to our advantage in the end, even though I can still feel that you're afraid of something. Is it fear that you may lose your little girlfriend?"**

'_It would be a lie if I said otherwise, but being a medic-nin, Hana-chan won't be doing much fighting. At least I hope so.'_

They resumed the conversation about their training, before Konoha's walls could be seen.

* * *

**===With Jiraiya===**

Not aware of what happened at the meeting, Jiraiya was inside one of the caves located in Fire Country, two hundred miles north from Konoha. This happens to be one of the places that his team had chosen to gather before missions. With time, the only member of the Sannin who used it was Jiraiya. The place was filled with a lot of memories, some of them bad, but lots of happy ones as well. One of the latter came to mind as he turned towards the cave entrance and remembered how three fresh out of the academy genins, followed by a still young Sandaime Hokage, discovered this little cave. He remembered entering the cave while running, before a very young Tsunade berated him for being so loud. Good times, he smiled. Another memory of his was when Tsunade berated him, when he was caught using the cave together with a brunette chunnin called Kagomi.

He was supposed to be in Konoha right now, until Tsunade returned, but this was dead serious.

Frowning, in sudden seriousness, he initiated a series of hand seals, before opening his mouth as wide as possible. From within, a long tube came out, before it hovered in front of him. On top of what appeared to be a gigantic scroll, was the head of a toad with its arms crossed in a bored manner. Jiraiya reasoned that it was time for a certain student of his to receive what was intended for him even before he was born. He nodded at the toad named **Gerotora, **before the toad's body opened, indicating the contents of the scroll. Inside, were markings that indicated a high level fuuinjutsu, the likes of which only masters could even understand. Jiraiya placed both hands inside the two squares drawn inside the scroll. For now, the scroll only responded to his chakra, seeing as he was the only bearer of the key to the power given from father to son. Now, it wouldn't be the case any longer, as it was time for Naruto to receive what was rightfully his to begin with.

"**Are you sure about this Jiraiya?"** Asked the toad, earned a nod from the perverted sannin.

"As sure as I will ever be. Naruto's growth these last few years showed that he is ready to receive it. He's very strong now, probably passed his sensei Hatake Kakashi in skill. However, against the Akatsuki, he'll need more. From now on, Gerotora, your new home will be inside Naruto, as you are the key to him having access to the other half of the fox's chakra." He stopped saying, before tweaking the seal once more. From the corner of his eye, he could see that, from the toad's concerned expression, he didn't agree with it. "Is there anything wrong with what I said or you're just grumpy that you won't be with me anymore?" The toad snorted at the last part.

"**No doubt the brat increased in skill, but I have questions on his resolve on things. He barely summons the toads and when he does, it's just so that Gamakichi can deliver the heads of the missing-nins to the Hokage. Also, according to the legend, he should be the one that would bring peace to this land. Instead, he's out there killing one by one. Something about his mentality worries me, Jiraiya. What if the fox takes advantage?" **Jiraiya couldn't help but understand the toad's concern, even though the only reason that Naruto didn't call the toads had merit behind it. There are only two known toad summoners within Konoha and that is Naruto and Jiraiya. If he would summon one with his mask on, it would be like taking the mask off, because his identity would be blown. Regarding the second and last concern, though, Jiraiya couldn't find any arguments to use in favor of what Naruto was doing.

It was a dark path he had chosen, the one of the hunter-nin.

"Naruto's resolve in ridding the world of criminals is no reason to be concerned at this point, Gerotora. Also, it's been too long since he first initiated this job and thus far, he maintained his sanity just fine. I believe that the brat will be okay. Our main concern is Akatsuki and how to better prepare Naruto for the future battles. Now, we must find him to initiate the procedure, but first I will return to Konoha and see how the meeting went. Surely, Tsunade must have returned already." The toad just nodded, before vanishing in thin air. Getting out of the cave, Jiraiya summoned his favorite way of transportation. Suddenly, a gigantic toad with orange skin and blue vest appeared in front of him. Jiraiya immediately jumped on top of said toad and, together, they hopped towards Konoha, causing the land to tremble at each jump.

The trip didn't last twenty minutes as the toad landed right in front of the west gate. Jiraiya was showing a smile on his face, completely unaware that his _little _toad almost killed Tsunade, Kakashi, Gai and Naruto who happened to arrive at the same time. Needless to say, Tsunade was pissed at the pervert and screamed that he should watch where he landed. The pervert heard a faint noise and looked down only to get scared at Tsunade's angered face. He dismissed the toad and met everyone. He was surprised that Naruto was with them as well, but chose to question it afterward. Gai said that he needed to talk with his students, leaving the four alone to converse.

Not even a second later, everyone shunshined inside the Hokage's office.

* * *

**===The Hokage's Office===**

Once inside, Jiraiya received a briefing of what happened at the meeting and frowned a bit at the decision of protecting the last jinchuuriki. He could see the reason why, but in his opinion, Naruto's strength and amount of chakra would be better used on the front lines. Looking at the blond the entire time, who for his part was busy caressing his dog's ears, Jiraiya was caught wondering what was going on inside Naruto's head, just like everyone at this point. If he was in Naruto's shoes, Jiraiya doubted that he would understand as easily as Naruto himself seemed to, or was at least showing. After everything was explained, Tsunade took a long breath in order to relay her decision to Naruto.

"Naruto, because of the decision of protecting you, I have decided to suspend your license as a hunter-nin." The mask was off the minute Tsunade spoke. The look on his eyes was empty as she thought it would be. "Every Konoha ninja who is participating at this war will know what the main objective is, thus your identity was breached. Until the war is over, there won't be a need for you to hunt missing-nins anyway. Now, regarding the two shinobi that will accompany you, do you have any names in mind?" Before Naruto could even open his mouth, Jiraiya volunteered for the first position, earning a nod from Tsunade as she was indeed thinking in sending the pervert as one of them.

Kakashi would be one of the generals appointed by Konoha, so only one position remained.

"I, then, choose Inuzuka Hana as second…" Tsunade was afraid he would choose his girlfriend, but Hana was a certified medic-nin, therefore she would be assigned to Shizune's squad. She hated herself for only giving him bad news.

"Sorry Naruto, but Hana will be with the medic-nin corp under Shizune." Naruto frowned but said nothing. He just nodded and opened the door of the Hokage's office. He turned briefly and gave his second answer. "Choose anyone you want Tsunade-sama…" The door was closed before the Hokage could even call him back. The three shinobi stared at the door for a while, before a collective sigh in distress was heard. Even though the brat changed his ways, he couldn't help but give everyone a nasty headache. Jiraiya and Kakashi, then, turned to Tsunade as she started thinking on a suitable shinobi to accompany Naruto and Jiraiya. In the end, she settled for Yamato as he had experience with bijuu suppression.

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

Walking alongside the blond, Mangetsu stayed quite the entire time. As his companion, the dog could feel Naruto's distress over this mess. As they walked towards nowhere, Naruto was receiving shocked looks from everyone. Ever since he initiated his hunter-nin experience, only a handful of people knew about it. Everyone just believed that the fox brat was gone for good. On his adjacent path, a woman was walking with a bag of groceries on her hand. She had pink hair and she was wearing a red common dress, giving all indication that Haruno Sakura was a mere civilian, not a respected medic jounin whose skills rivaled Tsunade's assistant Shizune. The minute her eyes landed on the man with black leather clothing, Sakura's eyes widened to impossible amounts upon seeing her teammate once more. Two years ago, he left with Jiraiya-sama. She never saw him again. She was shocked, however, when his eyes turned briefly to her, before resumed walking as if she was a total stranger to him.

Marching towards him to demand an explanation, she stopped in front of Naruto.

"What? You leave for another two years and you don't even remember me anymore, what's the matter Naruto? What happened to you all this time and why the strange black outfit? I missed you…."

He looked at his ex-teammate, though, with the same affection that he reserved for someone he met for the first time.

"Get out of my way Sakura, I don't wish to speak to you."

The cold tone in his voice surprised her so much that she barely registered that Naruto started walking again and left. A few seconds later, she turned and looked at his back as a tear escaped from her eyes. First Sasuke, now Naruto. Ever since the Uchiha suffered his penalty, she tried visiting him on several occasions. Eventually, he told Sakura that he didn't want anything to do with her and asked her never to return. Her heart was already shattered there, but at least she knew that Naruto would be there for her, when he returned. Now, it was evident that she'd lost both of her teammates forever.

By the end of the day, every ninja in Konoha, from chunnin and above, knew about the meeting of the kages and the consequences. Tsunade opted to call everyone and gather them, in order to explain everything and, possibly, answer everyone's questions. It came as a surprise to those who knew Naruto's situation, that he attended the meeting. His eyes still showed the hollow expression of a man who had lost his fire, but not once did he cower when everyone looked at him differently. Their feelings were understandable, given that this entire war was only to protect one single individual, even though the logo was formed.

_Save one, save everyone…_

If Akatsuki were to get a hold of the fox inside Naruto, then Madara could easily dominate the elemental nations. Surely, that did little to ease the minds of the few who believed that the reason behind this war was ludicrous. Naruto even had to endure one chunnin, an old one, who accused him to be the demon and thus, responsible for this occurrence in the first place. The blond just looked at the old man for a few seconds, wondering if any form of response would be relevant at this point. In the end, Naruto explained that Kyuubi wasn't the only bijuu in existence and thus, cannot be solely blamed for what was happening. Even though he was right, the man wouldn't admit it. The rookie 9 only settled for observing the blond enigma and none of them stood up for Naruto, not that he was really expecting anything.

* * *

**===At the Inuzuka Compound===**

It was now night time as the members of the Inuzuka Clan were having dinner and discussing the repercussions of this war. Hana wanted to be with her boyfriend, but she understood her position as one of Konoha's medic-nins. The Inuzuka Family was perhaps Naruto's biggest supporters in Konoha right now, due to his relationship with Hana and the fact that Mangetsu enjoyed his presence, perhaps even more than Hana. Hence why the clan compound was the only place Naruto could go to right now, just in case someone wanted to do something stupid and attack him because of what happened.

Said blond was outside, with his eyes closed. His resolve upon taking the mask of the hunter-nin Shi was to rid Konoha of criminals, thus bringing peace to the village. Now, he was nothing but a prize possession to be guarded. Akatsuki would, no doubt, kill more Konoha ninjas only to get to him. The question he ended up asking himself was if his decision back then was the right one. Sure, this war would occur regardless of said decision, but what if it mattered?

"**You can't change the course of history brat. If you could, then you'd stop Akatsuki from existing. What you can do is focus on the present and increase your skills in order to beat those imbeciles." **It was quite ironic that this fiery passion didn't come from Naruto, but the fox instead. Something inside Naruto just wanted to laugh at this. It was true, though. The only thing he could do was train and hope that with it, he could finally deal with the organization. For some reason, the fox felt excitement at the prospect of his host becoming stronger. After all, the fox's pride always ruled his thoughts and seeing Naruto beating high level shinobi, some even without his assistance, showed that the blond was a skilled warrior. Of course, these words wouldn't ever leave its mouth.

Naruto just kept outside the residence, until he saw the lights being switched off and Hana appearing behind him. He turned briefly and smiled at her presence, despite everything.

"Naruto, I'm going to bed, are you going back to your apartment?" The blond got up and looked at Hana's pretty face with a smile on his face.

"I was hoping to stay with you a bit longer, if you don't mind."

The woman nodded, before grabbing his hand and taking him to her room with a smile on her face. She missed him greatly since he acquired the position of jounin and left once more to his mission. As soon as Naruto entered Hana's bedroom, the woman locked the door and approached her lover's position, before enveloping her arms around him. This war had many possible repercussions for Konoha and even if none of them wished to think about it, death was always a possibility in the ninja world. This moment could very well be their last and neither of them would waste this opportunity. They started kissing passionately, while Naruto worked his hands around her clothing, smoothly as to not startle her.

The woman was slightly surprised when she felt her bra being unhooked, but smiled and deepened the kissing. After a while, they both wondered why the hell they were still standing and slowly went to bed. Hana stopped the kissing and removed Naruto's black leather jacket, before massaging his muscles. The blond kissed her once more, this time forcing the use of tongue. This act alone increased Hana's hormones as she opened her mouth submissively. Naruto's hands were busy taking off her clothing. Oh how he missed the feeling of her smooth skin and her sexy curves. Hana let out a moan in pleasure because of the massage, before using her sharp nails to rip Naruto's net shirt, promising Naruto a wild night. Even the fox was aroused at what his host's mate did and was about to do.

The next day, Naruto woke up and saw the look on Hana's room after last night. Their clothes were ripped to shreds and some of Hana's sheets were sprawled on the floor. The memories from last night still present in his mind, as he woke up and looked outside the room window, while Hana was still asleep. He didn't remember one time when he had such a night, not even on their first time, was as excited and wild. Rubbing his opened chest a bit, he was surprised to feel three scars, before he remembered that instead of using her hands, Hana used her claws to remove his fishnet clothing. Quite surely, they weren't the only ones enjoying the ravaging act. He remembered the fox giggling like a school girl in heat, while watching everything.

Turning to look at the girl of his dreams, Naruto couldn't help but smile upon seeing her sleeping with a smile on her face. It was such an interesting view for him. It brought warmth to his already cold heart and he figured that only she could bring the best out of him nowadays. Naruto saw the door opening, only to see his "mother in law" standing there with a smile on her face. The state the room was in was quite deplorable and the message was quite clear to the Inuzuka matriarch. Even so, there weren't any reprimands coming from an amused Tsume. She knew how _passionate _Inuzuka girls could be when excited with their mates. However, the reason for her intrusion wasn't to spy on her daughter and her daughter's boyfriend, even though her closet perverted mind could already picture some scenes, if the wound on Naruto's chest was any indication.

"Do you have some spare clothes, Naruto? I wanted to talk to you about something important."

The blond just nodded, before picking a scroll from his jacket and summoning a new pair of the same clothes he was wearing before. He quickly dressed and met Tsume who was reading a scroll inside the compound's kitchen. Two mugs of coffee were seen at the table and Naruto grabbed one and asked for some coffee from the matriarch, who poured him some, before resting the scroll and the coffee jar, before fixing her gaze on the blond for a while. What she had with her was very important to the clan.

"Naruto, the Inuzuka Clan, as you know, have one single word to live by and that is loyalty; loyalty to the village, loyalty to your teammate, to the members of the clan and the pack. I've seen your relationship with my Hana-chan for a while and I must say that she's never been happier. And for that I thank you…" Before Tsume could finish, Naruto opted to interrupt in a kind manner.

"There is no need for that Tsume-sama. The feeling is quite mutual." Tsume nodded with a smile on her face as she continued what she intended to speak with her 'son in law'.

"Not only are you dating my daughter, but right now you even have one of our ninkens with you all time, isn't that right Mangetsu-chan?" Naruto smiled at the presence of the husky sitting by his side. "We, of the Inuzuka Clan, consider the opinion of our fellow ninkens. As such, someone who is accepted by them, as you were, therefore, is considered an honorary member of the Inuzuka Clan. As such and clan head, it's my pleasure to give you this." When she finished speaking, Tsume picked up a simple, yet beautiful necklace with a small canine tooth. "This necklace represents that you're an honorary member of the Inuzuka Clan and anyone who sees it will know this." Naruto extended his hand and took it from Tsume, before strapping it around his neck.

"It's very nice and I appreciate it Tsume-sama. The Inuzuka Clan has always been kind to me and I have nothing but high regards, especially for your family. Hana-chan is my girlfriend and Kiba is a dear friend who kept my identity a secret all these years, when he didn't need to. As an orphan, I never knew what it was like to be part of a clan and for that I appreciate." His smile reminded Tsume so much of the Yondaime Hokage, calm and collected, with strong, but a peaceful spirit. She was proud of her daughter's choice for a boyfriend.

"There is no need to be so formal around me anymore, Naruto. Now, I believe you have a lot of things to do today, huh?"

Tomorrow would be his departure towards the hidden location where he would be hidden from the Akatsuki. That meant that he only had today to do what he needed to do. That meant restocking on supplies, visiting the hunter-nin division, in order to get a nice and long chat with the boss about his suspended license. Perhaps, he could shed some light over what he should focus on, in regards to further honing his skills. After all, there was no better hunter-nin than the boss. Also, he had a meeting with the Hokage and Jiraiya at the end of the day, therefore he needed to cross every item off his list by then. Also, checking up on his properties might not be such a bad idea. He supposed it would be prudent to at least see if his tenants were taking good care of the apartments.

"Yeah, I do. I think I better speed things up, because I'm expected to meet with the Hokage by the end of the day. Could you tell Hana-chan that I will return afterward?"

"Oh don't worry about her. She has her own duties to fulfill as well, Naruto. Her office doesn't run on its own. I'll be expecting both of you for a nice dinner before the war" Naruto nodded, before grabbing his hunter-nin mask. He was about to put it on, before he realized that his fucking license was suspended. Quickly opening the scroll he used for his clothing, he sealed it inside, before getting up and leaving the room, after saying his goodbye to Tsume. The woman for her part caught the look on his face upon not being able to wear the hunter-nin mask and remembered her husband when he retired from the hunter-nin division and became just a regular jounin. Tsume was sure that he would be as proud of Hana and Naruto as she was right now.

As she heard light footsteps coming down, she realized that Hana was already awake. It was now time to tease her daughter about what happened last night. It will be quite amusing to see Hana's embarrassed face.

"Morning Kaa-san, where is Naruto-kun?" Hana asked as she grabbed a bottle of milk from the fridge.

"He had some business to take care, Hana-chan and asked me to tell you that he would come here late afternoon. Now, I trust that you enjoyed last night if that smile on your face is any indication?" The sudden blush on both cheeks even matched the color of the Inuzuka mark and Tsume laughed uncontrollably at it. "I didn't know you had it in you, sweetie. I saw the claw marks on his chest. Also, the dogs acted strange all night. Care to share the details with your kaa-san?" Despite the heavy blush, Hana took a seat beside her mother and explained how it happened, of course, excluding the heavy parts. Tsume, despite being her mother, was considered her friend. And despite leading harsh lives, women can't help but be women when it comes to the day after sex.

The night with Hana served to ease his spirit as Naruto roamed through the free shinobi pathways; the rooftops. His first item of the agendas was to restock on supplies and fix his sword. Afterwards, he would talk to the boss and see what he had for Naruto, in terms of training ideas. His license was suspended by the Hokage, but that doesn't mean he couldn't interact with the man anymore. After this stupid war is over, he could hunt the rest of the missing-nins. Now, he settled for the items on his agenda. After all, he didn't have much time left.

* * *

**===Departure date===**

The last day in Konoha passed quickly and today Naruto was in front of the gate where he was supposed to meet Jiraiya and Yamato to leave towards the hidden location. He was accompanied by his girlfriend Hana and the couple's three dogs as Hana herself now regarded them. She figured that Mangetsu possibly liked Naruto morethan even she and the other two also enjoyed his company. Regarding Naruto, he managed to do everything he needed to do. He managed to fix the dent on his sword and restock his supplies, a lot of it meant for months on the field; he managed to talk to his boss about this whole situation and received some nice tips for training in the field, regarding the art of genjutsu. The man was right as it was the blond's most glaring weakness.

When smoke appeared next to them, Naruto breathed out a sigh at having to leave Hana and the dogs. He turned to her, first.

"Please promise me that you'll be safe Hana-chan. If you die, then I…." Hana stopped him from completing the statement, by kissing him with passion.

"I'll be safe Naruto-kun, don't worry. You just focus on getting stronger than you already are, just in case the Hokage changes her mind and decides that you should be on the front lines, as I really think you should be. I'll be here when you return and we can be together once more, everyone. I love you Naruto-kun…" This time, tears fell from her eyes, before Naruto gently used his hands to wipe them away. It was hard, nowadays, to get a smile out of Naruto. It was even harder to see that and tears in his eyes for the first time. Hana was the first person who ever said the word 'love' to him.

"I love you too Hana-chan." The sad noise from the dogs below made him smile, before he patted all three of them a bit, obviously focusing on Mangetsu the most.

"You take care of Hana for me, okay?" Mangetsu just nodded with her head, before returning the affection by licking his face.

Jiraiya and Yamato just stood outside the gate, waiting for Naruto to say his goodbyes. It was strange seeing only Hana there with him, seeing as in the past, the blond had many friends. They supposed it was the hunter-nin position that drove everyone away or the fact that Naruto chose to hide his identity from people. None of them knew the answer to this question. It was really a shame that things turned out like this and now, the acknowledgement he fought for in the past was completely shattered. When Naruto appeared by his side, he was looking down the entire time. It was probably because he was still crying over leaving everyone behind.

"Let's go already…" The three vanished like blurs towards the hidden location.

* * *

**Author Note**

A bit shorter than usual, but nonetheless served its purpose.

As I stated before, I won't be focusing much on the actual war, as all my work revolves around the central character Naruto. Next chapter, some major revelations will occur, but I won't be revealing anything yet. I'll leave to all of you to figure out what will happen. Now what did you think of Naruto's reaction? His calm and collected response to Tsunade ended up hurting her more than if she used her own super punch against her. And what every man desires from his partner, someone that can release all the pent up frustrations and assist him. I bet that every closet pervert reader out there could picture some wild scenes between Naruto and a hormone induced Inuzuka Hana. Also, I enjoyed placing Tsume as a different kind of mother, more akin to her nature instincts.

Please review!

See ya.


	23. The one you used to be

**Author Note**

Hello there and welcome to another chapter of Hunter-nin.

I don't know if all of the readers had a chance to read my latest updates, but I'll come and say it again. This story is amongst the two (Full Moon as well) that I'll be ending in five chapter, beginning with this one. I've already settled what I want in each chapter and I can promise that the ending will blow your minds. Some will curse me night and day, but I believe it will be consistent with this new Naruto I'm portraying. The war arc will be the last with perhaps a time-skip epilogue.

I plan to end this story by the end of the 2011 or at the beginning of 2012, so stick with me for the first of the last five chapters.

* * *

Now, I'll post below the answers to the reviews from last chapter.

**Nobother** – Killer Bee was captured by Pein and the Hachibi was extracted by Akatsuki, meaning that Naruto is now the last jinchuuriki alive.

**Roshane** – Naruto in canon may now be stronger, because he has full access to Kyuubi's power. Nevertheless, if this Naruto had, for instance, the same level of access, then he would be much more powerful, since he would know how to use it better than the Naruto from canon. He have more jutsus in his arsenal and more capabilities than just using the Rasengan every time. You'll know what I mean soon enough, just wait.

**Darksnider05 **– read Roshane's response.

**Fox girl66 – **Naruto won't be the same as he once was, meaning he won't be surrounded by his peers any longer. In apologizing to them would be like negating everything he has done since the beginning of the story and that's not what I have in mind. After all, the path of the hunter-nin is lonely and without much retribution for Naruto's services. I'll even do the opposite, no offense. With the exception of Shino and Kiba, who have more affinity with the hunter-nin, the rest will be just that, the rest.

**The Sad Reaper** – I'm not planning on using Hana as a trigger for Naruto's anger in order to defeat Madara, but rather his drive to capture Konoha's worst criminal. The idea sounds nice, but in my opinion, is not original. Pretty much every time, we see a damsel in distress and the hero saving her by beating the villain. It's always the same scene. The damsel is captured by the villain who lets out a sinister laugh and the hero comes into the scene with some cliché speech and defeat the villain, thus saving the damsel.

**Kingkakashi **– This very personality disorder that I'll be rectifying in this chapter.

Here's the first chapter of a series of five, enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter 23 – The one you used to be**

**Beta: Kyuubi123**

* * *

It took a total of five days for Naruto and his bodyguards to reach Lightning Country's port city.

Both Yamato and Jiraiya were used to silent travels as both had already participated in sensitive missions throughout their careers. However, none of them were prepared for a trip of complete silence. Naruto hadn't muttered a single word since they left Konoha, nor did he paid any attention to either Jiraiya or Yamato's attempts to begin a conversation. Both of them could see how his eyes lacked the usual focus on his surroundings and it began to worry them greatly, since they didn't know how Naruto was processing this mess. After the third day of travel, they gave up and let him be until they arrived at their destination. Naruto would have to open up to them eventually, since they were scheduled to remain at their hideout for a long time. They could only leave the place once the five kages appeared and released them, otherwise their orders were to remain hidden indefinitely.

Of course it wouldn't take that long, though. The bigger the enemy, the longer it takes for the war to finish.

Akatsuki was composed of only a few members, even if each member has the power to level an entire village. That being said, if the alliance managed to take down the members, then the war would end and everything would go back to normal...or as normal as it could be anyway. Lightning Country's port city was easily three times as big as Fire Country's, perhaps because it was Lightning's main source of travel whereas Fire Country used the land as its main way of transportation. It didn't mean that Fire Country didn't use sea routes; it's just that it had less than other countries such as Lightning, Water and Wave.

Quickly moving through the docks, the team from Konoha located the ship that would take them as well as two members from each village to a hidden location chosen by the Raikage himself. As they arrived at the ship's location, the team was surprised to see the Mizukage there with a member of the Seven Swordsmen named Choujuurou. As far as the ninjas from Konoha were concerned, the kages wouldn't participate directly in this war, but rather as commanders of the alliance, with the exception of Gaara, who was appointed as General of the Army. The team from Konoha quickly went onboard and Jiraiya approached the Mizukage for some explanation.

"Good afternoon Mizukage-sama. I wasn't aware you'd be joining us?" Although it was a sensitive mission, Jiraiya couldn't help but check the woman's impressive figure. Mei Terumi just smiled, though, not caring.

"Indeed, my part in the jinchuuriki's protection was decided by the Kages at the last minute. I'm here just in case Akatsuki finds our location."

Despite the lack in a Sannin's skills, Jiraiya just nodded and left the Mizukage alone.

* * *

**===At the Ship===**

Since the jinchuuriki was onboard, the ship set sail, leaving the port city towards the hidden location. Naruto opted to left alone as usual, avoiding any form of contact, even from the Mizukage herself, trying as best to be polite, seeing as she was the Mizukage. No matter what everyone said, though, this entire situation was fucked up in his opinion. Hiding him from Akatsuki was perhaps the dumbest thing he ever heard of. However, he couldn't argue with his kage's decision. In their right mind, protecting him would stop Akatsuki from fulfilling their ambition. And even if thousands are killed in the process, he was the one who needed protection. Naruto just hoped that the alliance managed to take the Akatsuki down without many casualties. He became a hunter-nin so that he could take care of them alone, without killing the ones he held dear, not to be protected like this. Also, was it not the alliance's wish that its weapon fought for the village?

All of these thoughts were in Naruto's head and only one, besides him, could hear them.

"**Would you stop whining, you damn piece of flash. No one can hear your thoughts, but me and it's been five days already. Give me a break!" **

'_Okay, already, I'll stop. But I just needed to vent out my frustrations that's all. I'm aware that is no use complaining.' _

The fox just snorted at him, before stopping the link.

Naruto let out a long sigh as he stared at the horizon ahead. So far, his sight was limited to water and more water. The island, or whatever place he was heading toward, would not be visible for a couple of days. Still, the ocean was a nice place to allow him some piece of mind. So he just settled his mind to relax at the sound of the waves punishing the ship's hull as well as the gentle sound of the birds which were flying above the ship. Complaining nonstop would get him nowhere as the situation was now irreversible. His only hope was to train constantly and with it, defeat Akatsuki once and for all. Slowly, but surely, Naruto's eyes returned its regular focus as he now was able to think without his emotions clouding his judgment. It happened just as Jiraiya appeared by his side.

"I'm glad you came back to us, Naruto. I was starting to worry." The blond hunter-nin turned his head and saw Jiraiya smiling at him.

"My thoughts just were elsewhere. I kept wondering if protecting me was the best alternative to this entire mess. Why protect the weapon, which was created for the purpose of fighting in the first place?" Jiraiya frowned at the word weapon, but didn't make that much of a deal. The fact that Naruto was talking to him was enough for now. He knew now that during the trip to the port city, Naruto was busy wondering about these questions. It wasn't healthy for him to dwell on such thoughts. One shinobi alone shouldn't carry the burden of others, unless he or she was the Hokage. Even if this entire event was triggered because of the tailed beasts, Naruto couldn't be held responsible for whoever died because of it. It was the blond's nature, though, he reasoned, to take responsibilities that far exceeded his current position.

Even as a genin, Naruto was like this.

"You shouldn't consider yourself a mere weapon, without conscience, Naruto. The need for your protection far exceeds your importance for the village's military power or the alliance's. Tsunade wouldn't throw you to the wolves just like that...well, at least not more than what you had actually asked her to." Jiraiya was referring to his hunter-nin responsibilities. "Although you never seem to consider yourself much in detriment to others, you _are_ important to Konoha and above all, you are important to us as a human being. Don't ever think that the village only needs you as an asset." Naruto held a smile on his face, as he heard Jiraiya's attempt of convincing him not to consider himself a weapon, even if deep down, not only him, but every shinobi in Konoha is considered an asset for the village to use. It's through them that the village's economy survives. The shinobis and kunoichis are Konoha's products to sell.

Naruto remained silent though, as he pretended to think about Jiraiya's words. The pervert bought the lie and went to chat with Yamato a bit.

The blond was interrupted once more, though, when a man approached him from the left. It was one of the Kumo's representatives by looking at the type of wardrobe he was wearing. The man named Motoi's wardrobe was black all over with a Kumo standard white vest on top as well as a white scarf around his neck. He also wore white arm braces and white battle boots. The man's hair was weird in Naruto's opinion. It was black and had the form of three spikes from both sides followed by two smaller ones on the top.

(**AN: I can't really describe the man's hair!**)

"You are the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki, correct?" Naruto chose not to answer the obvious question, but Motoi really wasn't waiting one, since he just used this way of approach to begin the conversation. "My name is Motoi and I'm one of the two representatives from Kumogakure along with Dodai over there with the weird looking hat, it's a pleasure to meet you."

**(AN: For those who don't know who Dodai is, is the jounin from manga 555 that assisted Naruto in defeating the Sandaime Raikage.)**

Naruto merely shook the man's head and greeted him back, earning a smile from Motoi.

"Now that the pleasantries are over, I feel that is prudent to explain you a thing or two about the place we're heading right now."

"Ah yes, all I know is that is an island that doesn't appear in any map. I was actually wondering why." Motoi smiled at that knowledge.

The place was indeed the world's best hiding place. Of course, it wasn't registered in any map, because technically it couldn't be considered an island.

"The island, let's call this place as such, is twenty miles at the direction we're heading to right now. It is mainly filled with wild vegetation and gigantic animals. In a way, it is similar to Konoha's famous Forest of Death. No human lives at the island, which is one of the reasons that is considered the best hideout in all the elemental nations. The other reason, which to me is the main one, is that the island isn't an island in the first place." Naruto just looked at the man with a lifted eyebrow, urging the man to explain why it couldn't be considered an island. Motoi smirked once more.

"You'll know what I'm talking about once we arrive."

Motoi turned and went to his comrade's position, leaving Naruto alone to wonder what exactly he meant by that. He may not be a very intelligent human being, but even he knew that any piece of land surrounded by water from all sides was considered an island. Nevertheless, his mind could easily find more pressing matters to consider than merely attesting the quality of his hideout or prison, as he liked to call it. After Motoi's interruption, the trip proceeded without any form of interruption, so the blond had just settled to relax and feel the environment around him. It was actually relaxing to the tormented hunter-nin. He was now standing right in front of the ship as if he was the captain.

Eventually, Naruto opened his eyes when Motoi announced their arrival at the so called island they would be staying for the duration of this war.

From the position that Naruto was, he couldn't see anything out of the ordinary. The trees were easily enormous, even if the vessel was still two miles away from the dock. Naruto couldn't see why it couldn't be considered an island. When the corner of his eyes caught the slight turn of the ship, he started wondering the necessity of it. They didn't need to change course, since the island was straight ahead. He took a while after the ship was turned to realize that the vessel was actually _following _the island's movement. The hunter-nin was speechless as Motoi appeared next to him.

"It appears that you know what I was talking about earlier, huh. Even if you don't know why, you're aware that the island is in constant movement."

"Yeah, why is that?"

"The island, if you still want to call it that, is actually a gigantic tortoise. You'd only be able to see if you got underwater. That's precisely why it isn't registered in any map and also why Akatsuki can't appear here. We will be in constant movement throughout the immensity of the oceans. Actually, this is the place where Yondaime Raikage-sama and his brother Kirabi-sama used to train together, may Kami have his soul right now." Naruto knew that this Kirabi person was in fact the Hachibi Jinchuuriki, who was captured by the Akatsuki and had his demon extracted from him, which led to his death.

Naruto could also sense great sadness coming from Motoi's words upon mentioning Kirabi's early demise.

"From the sound of your voice, I take it you were friends with Kirabi?" Motoi instantly berated himself from being that transparent.

However, he didn't find any reason not to tell Naruto the truth.

"When we were children, Kirabi and me, Hachibi belonged to another Jinchuuriki. The man had skills that far exceeded any expectations, but the beast's will was just too powerful and couldn't be tamed that easily. It eventually escaped from the previous host's body, killing him instantly. The Sandaime Raikage engaged in a fierce battle against the beast. Many shinobis perished, including my father. After the beast was finally imprisoned once more, Kirabi was chosen as the next jinchuuriki."

Motoi waited a moment for Naruto to digest the beginning of the story before continuing.

"I grew up resenting the beast because of it, but because Kirabi was its jinchuuriki, I ended up resenting him for it." Naruto couldn't help but snort at the thought, since he too was a victim of said misguided hatred and still is. "Kirabi, despite being hated and feared by people, never lost his cheerful attitude and I watched him from afar, believing that he was the one responsible for my father's death."

"One time, I took enough courage and got within striking position behind Kirabi. I was driven by revenge at the time and all I wanted was to finish it once and for all, the consequences be damned." Motoi looked down suddenly. "I couldn't, though. I just didn't have the courage to go through with it. At that moment, he turned and saw me with his never ending smile and offered his fist for me as it was his form of greeting. Later I realized that he knew I was behind him and he knew what I intended in doing. Nevertheless, not once did he lose the intention of becoming my friend." The Kumo jounin smiled, then. "It was thanks to him that I managed to let go and I'm eternally grateful."

Motoi kept looking up with a smile on his face as the image of his friend in one of his famous poses appeared.

"It's nice to have someone to count on. We jinchuuriki don't get to have normal lives like the others. At least, he died knowing that he would be missed."

Motoi looked at Naruto for some time, wondering what he meant by that statement. Kumogakure was perhaps the only place where jinchuurikis weren't necessarily scorned, since they were hailed as heroes for keeping the beast at bay for the sake of the population. It was an ideal defended by both the Sandaime and the Yondaime Raikage, not only because it protected Kumo, but also because of the strength it represented to the village. Having two tailed beast tamers was considered by many, as Kumo's advantage in terms of war. Motoi dared assess that even Konoha, with its precious bloodlines, would think twice before engaging against Kumogakure nowadays. He didn't know, though, how it was for a jinchuuriki to grow in Konoha, since he wasn't fully aware of the sacrifices needed to imprison the Kyuubi no Yoko. It was after all the strongest tailed beast out there, stronger than the Hachibi.

Perhaps Naruto was a loner and missed someone to be there for him, he wondered.

Kirabi, although cheerful, had few people that he could count on actually. Except his brother, Motoi and his genin team, he didn't have that many friends.

Motoi was saved from asking Naruto for some explanation, when he heard his partner screaming that they had arrived and would be docking soon.

* * *

**===At the Island===**

Naruto didn't waste time and started walking towards the stairs to reach the docks. Motoi, though, kept looking at this new jinchuuriki and realized that the blond was the exact opposite of Kirabi's or at least what his old friend could be if he succumbed. Naruto joined Jiraiya and Yamato and were about to walk away, when the Mizukage approached their position. The three may be distant from the others and explore the island but the Mizukage was the one chosen from the kages to protect Naruto. If Akatsuki appeared, then she would be there to intervene. None of the three Konoha-nins enjoyed the woman's company right now, even if Jiraiya's perverted mind was busy comparing if Mei's boobs were bigger than Tsunade's.

However, none of them voiced their opinions out loud. The rest of the bodyguards were stationed at the cabins that were built there recently.

Back to the Konoha crowd and the Mizukage, they were walking for quite some time and Naruto was taking his time looking at his surroundings. He could see a bunch of animals hiding behind the trees as they looked at the humans who dared invade their territory. The only one who had authorization for such a thing was the Hachibi Jinchuuriki. Looking at Jiraiya, the one in the front, he realized that the pervert wasn't even looking around, meaning that he knew where he was heading toward.

"You seem to know where you're going, Jiraiya?" The perverted sannin nodded, while showing to Naruto a map he had acquired from the Hokage.

"In this map, there is a cave located not so far from here when we can begin your next level of training. I'm sure that Mizukage-sama here won't mind if we train a bit, don't you?" The woman just shook his head, allowing it. She had the highest rank, so she dictated.

"What form of training are we talking about here?" Naruto asked and Jiraiya only answered it by looking down at Naruto's stomach and smiling.

"We'll be mastering the Kyuubi's chakra of course." Neither Yamato nor the Mizukage understood why Naruto suddenly stiffened a bit, while walking. It appeared as if he was terribly afraid of what Jiraiya was talking about. The pervert though understood why. He was the one who was on the receiving end of a four tailed influenced Naruto, when they attempted this the first time. He even rubbed the scar on his chest, caused by Naruto's attack. It was perhaps the only nearest he's ever been to death, so he understood Naruto's reluctance. "Don't worry about what happened that time, Naruto. You've become a lot more skilled since then, I'm sure you'll do fine. Also, I have another ace in the whole to use, which will aid you in further controlling the fox's chakra."

Naruto remembered the last two times when he used four tails. His skin was corrosive, his blood was too hot and he just couldn't control his actions.

He didn't know if the fox was the one dictating his thoughts or if he just became a berserker, just attacking whoever appeared in front of him.

"I just hope that if anything goes wrong, you will be able to stop me this time."

Perhaps a bad sort of saying it, both Yamato and Mei thought. Was he implying that Jiraiya, one of the Sannin, couldn't stop him before?

"You don't remember but the seal that Kakashi used on you was my creation. I'm much more prepared right now, but I don't believe we'll be in a situation that I'll have to use it. You'll know soon enough." Naruto went through his memories, trying to remember what Jiraiya was talking about when his fight against the Akatsuki member Deidara flashed in his mind. At the time, he remembered using a second tail, when Kakashi appeared from behind and placed a seal on his forehead. Seconds afterwards, the fox's chakra was out of his system and he was tired. However, what would happen if Naruto was using four tails or higher. Would the seal work, then?

'_What are your thoughts, you damn silent all of a sudden fur ball' _Naruto screamed inside his mind to get the fox's attention, but he couldn't hear anything. Something was seriously odd, since not once did the fox lose an opportunity to speak his mind about things in general and regarding the situation right now, Naruto was certain that Kyuubi would offer his insight.

The group resumed their trip towards the cave, when Naruto stopped and turned to the right. He saw a waterfall, a small one, with a small bunker of land right in the middle of the lake and right in front of the waterfall. Something about this entire scenario appeared to be calling him somehow. The others stopped and wondered why Naruto was doing. Jiraiya smirked at his well thought plan, which earned question marks from Yamato and Mei. He took this route simply because he wanted Naruto to take a look at the waterfall for a moment. Of course, he wasn't counting on the blond going there by himself, but it worked the same in the end. For Jiraiya's training to work, Naruto needed to remember something he long ago forgotten and the only one who would ever be able to review it to him was himself.

He appeared behind Naruto and started explaining.

"From what information I was able to gather about this island, this place is called the 'Waterfall of Truth' and it was used by the Hachibi Jinchuuriki a long time ago during his training with the bijuu. You have to take a seat at that bunker over there and close your eyes to see who you truly are." Naruto looked at Jiraiya for a moment as he pondered the meaning behind those words. Deciding not to comment, Naruto just walked towards the bunker and looked at the waterfall for a while, before taking a seat and closing his eyes. According to Jiraiya, this waterfall would somehow show him what he really are. Those words sounded strange for Naruto. Who he really was? He hadn't changed a bit, well perhaps a little change after he became a hunter-nin, but nothing much. For a while, nothing happened and Naruto was already calling it quits. When he opened his eyes, though, a black frame appeared from behind the waterfall.

**(**_**'dattebayo' – Alter Naruto speech / **_**'dattebayo' – Regular Naruto speech)**

"_Why did you have to kill all those people?" _The voice came from behind the waterfall and Naruto was already grabbing his sword when his eyes widened to impossible proportions. A person came out from the waterfall, wearing the same outfit as him and looking the same as him.

"Who are you?

"_Can't you tell just by looking? I'm you or at least a part of you. Up until the day when Asuma-sensei was killed, we were one and the same. Since then, you've been slowly but surely driving me away, by each life you took"_ The look on Alter Naruto's face was one of sadness. Sadness for every life he took under the mission of a hunter-nin. Naruto just looked at his alter ego for a moment, studying this new him, while at the same time remembering what Jiraiya said to him earlier. Jiraiya said that he needed to see who he truly were and the one in front of him represented the strong but naïve child, who believed that everyone deserved a second chance in life, no matter what they've done in the past.

"All of the lives I took were from criminals and if you say you are who you are, then you understand that they couldn't be left alive. What would happen if one of them came and killed the ones precious to us, huh?" Naruto was lost between arguing with himself and abandoning this annoying idea. Sure, the first kill shocked him, but it was a necessary step in order to rid Konoha of criminals.

"_I know that the reasons were justified, but in acting like this, we're acting as if it would be justified to kill all those who wronged us in the past. They were criminals too in our book, not just the bingo book. Not to mention the fact that some of the criminals whose life you took weren't exactly criminals. One last shred of humanity allowed us to spare that woman's life, but what do you say about that Hyuuga girl you killed. She had already lost and yet, we killed her anyway, all because of this stupid book." _Naruto just stared, without any sign of being affected, at his alter ego screaming about maintaining Naruto's humanity. Of course, he remembered what Hyuuga Alter Naruto was talking about. Nevertheless, in Naruto's mind, he did what it was needed of him.

"_You're still thinking we're just a mindless weapon right now, aren't you? We only serve as a mere tool for Tsunade-bachaan to use at her disposal." _The question surprised Naruto, before he realized that the waterfall must have read his thoughts somehow. _"Ero-sennin is right, we can't think like this, we're more than people like Zabuza or Haku."_

"Why don't you just get away from here, huh? I'm not interested in wasting my time here discussing our actions."

Alter Naruto just smirked at Naruto. It wasn't an evil one, but a playful one, the likes of which stopped occuring once Asuma was dead.

_"Like I said, I am you; you can't get rid of me, no matter what you try. That being said, it's time for me to force it on you to understand"_ Alter Naruto ran at Naruto with an identical speed charging a rasengan on his right hand. Naruto just evaded the attack and grabbed his sword for a clean swipe. He was shocked once Alter Naruto grabbed an identical sword and blocked the attack, before performing the same move that the real one would do next.

Outside of Naruto's mind, the three shinobi were looking at Naruto. The blond was doing nothing but seating there with his eyes closed. Both Mei and Yamato turned to Jiraiya for questioning, only for the man to explain. According to the pervert, this waterfall reviews a ninja's true color. He explained that Naruto right now must be fighting against his alter ego for dominance. Back to Naruto's mindscape, the two Narutos were staring at each other from opposite sides of the inner battlefield. Naruto was shocked, but not surprised that the one in front of him would have the same skills as him, including all the jutsus and control over the fox's chakra. One aspect of the fight was that after a great load of jutsus, Naruto was getting tired, while Alter Naruto appeared to be ok. He, then, remained on the ground as he pondered on a couple of facts. First of all, the one in front of him was indeed himself even if he was different. Jiraiya couldn't have manipulated this, simply because he didn't have access to Naruto's reports, only the Hunter-nin Commander had.

Also, he realized that there was only one way to get rid of this alter ego in front of him.

When he got up, the blond realized what he could do.

"There is no use using force against you. You are me after all, hence you know every move I'll make and I'll know every move you make. The only way I can get rid of you is to suddenly embrace you and admit that everything I did was wrong. Indeed, going on a killing spree cannot be the answer to a peaceful future." Alter Naruto smiled at this comment, but he would soon stop, when Naruto finished. "However, a criminal won't simply stop being one, if his executioner shows leniency over what he had done. In letting them live, we're letting them the chance of coming up with something and that generally leads to the death of those we cherish. Perhaps, before Asuma's death, we were naïve to the world. We believed that everything could and would be fixed with perseverance and hard work. But we both know that there are those who wouldn't stop at nothing to see the world burn and that's why I can't simply stop and let those who wronged Konoha, to survive."

Alter Naruto tried screaming at him to think otherwise, but Naruto stopped him.

"And for you to exist, it means that I still felt some shed of remorse for taking the life of criminals. That being said, I will, from now on, follow a different set of mind. A criminal is a criminal, no matter what he has done. But instead of killing everyone, I'll reserve the killing for those who actually deserves it. The rest will be incapacitated and taken back to the village. It won't necessarily mean their salvation based on the crimes, but it will at least reserve my punishment for those who openly deserve it." The fact that Naruto was looking down the entire time ended in him not seeing that Alter Naruto was standing right in front of him with a huge goofy smile on his face.

"It's good to know that you still maintain our stubborn personality. We defy odds every day and I can't really ask more from you." Both of them shook hands for a moment, before Alter Naruto vanished.

Naruto opened his eyes and saw that he was back into the outside world as he saw Jiraiya, Mei and Yamato looking at him as if expecting him to explain what happened. Naruto simply walked on top of the water and passed by Jiraiya and Yamato, as he continued walking like he knew where they were going next. The other three took it as a sign that the jinchuuriki wasn't much interested in sharing with them regarding what happened at the waterfall. Both Mei and Yamato admitted caring very little about it, but Jiraiya wanted to know. He would ask Naruto later, once the boy calmed his thoughts. True to Jiraiya's plan, Naruto's mind was now in turmoil. If what he saw at the waterfall was real, then all of those killings had transformed him into something else.

It wasn't bad by any means, but if he was supposed to kill these many criminals two or three years ago, the story would be completely different.

Their deaths were finally catching up to him and Naruto was beginning to feel the toll of being their executioner. Before, he killed them without any form of mercy, in order to rid the world of criminals. Now, he began to feel their blood on his hands. Why the sudden change, he wondered? The image of himself shaking heads with Alter Naruto from the waterfall made him question if by touching Alter Naruto, his thoughts and beliefs resurfaced, mingling with his hunter-nin set of mind. Always believe in capturing an enemy, before moving in for the kill. It was his promise to his alter ego back then. But would that change anything? Before his hunter-nin license was revoked, Naruto was moving on to the A and S-ranked missing-nins. Those were Konoha's most violent or the most powerful criminals in existence.

Capturing them may not be that easy to accomplish.

Suddenly, a new spark appeared in Naruto's eyes as if an epiphany suddenly appeared right in front of him. Capturing these criminals is much harder than killing them. In order to capture, you must be even stronger, it was precisely why Akatsuki was so powerful. They couldn't risk destroying the jinchuuriki, so they would settle for capturing them instead. That took a whole different level of skill, because of the amount of power they had to face off against. If Naruto could harness the power of the fox, like Jiraiya said, he could increase his skills so that he could capture criminals, instead of just killing them. It was a new resolve in his mind. He knew he couldn't change the past and quite probably, the world was better off without some missing-nins running around the lands and causing destruction. He didn't regret what he did, because of this.

It was good that the blond was in front of everyone, because then the three would be able to see the sudden smirk on his face. Jiraiya was actually the one who noticed Naruto relaxing his shoulders and posture a bit and smiled at the boy. Whatever he conjured in his mind, it made him much more at ease. The pervert thought that Naruto was now ready to receive his father's last gift. Increasing his steps a bit, he took Naruto's position as leader of the pack and ushered them to follow him as he took a left from their position.

"The cave should be a few miles away from here now, we are close."

In actuality, the group was actually returning to the place they came from, the Waterfall of Truth.

* * *

**===Inside the cave===**

As soon as they reached the waterfall once more, Naruto questioned why the hell they were back here and Jiraiya just smiled and blamed the map given to him that made them do more laps than necessary. He walked towards the waterfall, never stopping until he passed through the water. The rest of the three waited a minute, before following the pervy sage. Yamato was the last one to walk through the waterfall. They took a minute to administer the place before them. It appeared to be a regular cave, surrounded by water. In front of him, was a path that was flanked by head less statues. The four went through the path, until they reached the end of it, where a lion's mouth could be seen on the wall.

"Okay Naruto, this step is very important from what information I was able to gather. The waterfall was the first step needed for your training to begin. Whatever you saw back there, must be remembered right now. This lion statue you see before you is quite dangerous for those with evil in their hearts. You'll have to stick your head inside the lion's mouth, but be warned, that if you have evil in your heart, the lion's jaws will snap shut, decapitating you in the process. You must remember what you saw at the waterfall at all times. This will be your second step towards mastering the fox's chakra." Naruto stood watching the lion's statue for a while, before he shrugged and placed his head inside.

Once inside, he waited for the least sign of danger, so that he could use the replacement technique to escape.

None came however, as he looked inside to see what he was supposed to do. He saw a red button located right in front of him and was about to press it, before stopping once a thought appeared in his mind. According to Jiraiya, the statue would decapitate him if he had evil in his heart. Naruto was a hunter ninja, meaning that he had killed a lot of enemies in the past. So, why the statue didn't move? He remembered what his alter ego said, that he wasn't evil, but rather his methods were. Naruto remembered the gigantic smile that his alter ego showed him once they shook hands together. Jiraiya said he needed to remember what he saw at the Waterfall. Well, he saw himself three years ago, before Asuma was murdered by Akatsuki.

With a small grin, he pushed the button, before removing his head from the lion's mouth.

A door suddenly materialized next to the lion statue, before it opened, revealing a chamber filled with white light. Naruto was about to go inside, when Jiraiya landed a hand on his right shoulder, ushering him to stop for a while. Without saying anything, Jiraiya did a few hand seals, before opening his mouth wide. A strange tube suddenly got out of his throat, before it expanded, revealing that it was a strange looking toad. He had the head and members of one, but his body appeared to be a scroll of some kind. The scroll suddenly opened in front of them, before an enormously complex seal appeared, confusing everyone, including Naruto.

"Naruto, this is Gerotora, he's the one who carries the final key needed for you to fully control the fox's chakra. Now, why don't you focus some chakra to your fingers and touch that square at the center? The Yondaime Hokage always wanted you to have it." The blond nodded, before doing as Jiraiya instructed him to. The scroll then was closed, before Gerotora ushered Naruto to open his mouth wide. He was surprised when the toad just jumped inside and tried forcing his way down Naruto's throat. It was clear that he wouldn't be able to go all the way through, so Jiraiya came and gave Gerotora a little push, allowing the toad to enter Naruto's stomach.

"Damn it, what was that toad thinking? He at least could have warned me that this would happen." The blond was busy chocking on the ground and complaining to the amused Jiraiya.

It happened the same thing with him when Minato sealed the Kyuubi's chakra.

"Now Naruto, we are on to the third and last step, but now you'll be alone for this next step. I'm sure you know what you have to do now, right?"

After cleaning his mouth a bit, he nodded.

"Yes, open the gate and fight the fox for the right of its chakra." Jiraiya nodded, ignoring Mei and Yamato's outburst at the idea of releasing the fox.

"Now get in that room and close your eyes. Remember what you saw at the waterfall and stick to that. Just remember, though, once you free the fox, you'll have to capture its chakra literally. You'll know what I mean once you get there. Be warned, though, that the fox could suck your chakra dry as well. If you wish to take your time, feel free. We are going nowhere for a while." Naruto nodded, but didn't feel like waiting for it. He entered the room, before the door was shut. Naruto was truly alone in this, whatever it entailed. Yamato approached next to the focused Jiraiya. He wasn't that much thrilled with dealing with a loose Kyuubi.

"Jiraiya-sama, with all due respect, I don't believe it is wise for Naruto to free Kyuubi. What happens if he can't handle it and the fox escapes?"

"This cave was built specially for taming tailed beasts, Yamato. If Naruto can't stop the fox, I will seal it inside the chamber which, according to the Raikage, was designed for this purpose."

* * *

**===Inside Naruto's mind===**

Taking a seat and closing his eyes, Naruto didn't take long to reach the Kyuubi's chamber. The fox appeared to know what happened and looked at a different Naruto in its eyes. Albeit different, Kyuubi could see that the blond retained a great load of the qualities he possessed before coming to this forsaken island. The fox was looking down at its host differently than before. Even if Naruto got accustomed to the Kyuubi's presence, he never stopped sensing the evil atmosphere in this place. Opting not to say anything, Naruto just approached the cave and grabbed the seal that was holding the prison, before ripping it off revealing a second lock design.

"**What are you doing Naruto?" **

'_Just wait and see, fox. I'm almost done.' _Lifting his jacket, Naruto activated the seal in his stomach, before it spread throughout his right arm. With the key in place, he slammed it at the lock, before turning. The sound of a lock being opened came first and the Kyuubi punched the prison, knocking the doors open with a mighty roar. Naruto immediately jumped backwards in position to fight as the fox appeared right in front of him, snarling at him. Kyuubi's face promised a great load of pain, but Naruto could see something that surprised him. He was surprised to see it, though, before he remembered and asked the fox.

"You were awfully quiet throughout this entire ordeal, Kyuubi. Why didn't you speak your mind when this entire thing started?"

"**For someone with half a brain, you actually caught it quick. I don't have any intention of fighting back if you desire to take my power. The fact you freed me from the cage is enough. Even if you take my chakra, you won't get rid of me that easily, you brat. Let's just say once that I enjoyed being inside you since you started the killing spree. Now, you can see an aura next to me, that looks just like me." **Naruto turned and saw the black aura of the fox extending from his body and realized that Naruto too had one just like the fox. **"You can grab and start sucking the chakra. It will hurt like hell, but knowing it will be used to squash our enemies, is enough."**

"How can I tell if you're just screwing with me and will capture mine, as soon as I drop my guard?" The fox actually smiled at the comment.

"**Given the right circumstances, I would do just that yes. It's one of the reasons why I'm letting you take it, you brat. Now go on already before I change my mind and eat you."**

Naruto smiled at the creature, before doing as he was instructed. The fox let out a roar of pain as his chakra was being sucked by Naruto at a fast rate. When the procedure was finished, Kyuubi's fur was practically ripped from his body as he looked weakly at its host. Naruto was looking at his sudden change. His body was surrounded with golden flame and a new seal design appeared on his chest. It wasn't to say that the fox was sucked dry, just that it would take a little while to gather back its chakra. The fox saw that Naruto approached and landed his hand on its nose. The fox could see Naruto's eyes and if it wasn't mistaken, he was seeing pity regarding the fox's state.

"**Damn you brat, I might actually take more offense for you looking at me like that then what you have just done. My chakra will return in no time." **

Naruto nodded at his partner, before taking a seat next to the fox.

"Sorry about that, I…." Naruto was about to speak when suddenly two human being appeared in front of him, smiling at him. The first one, a female, had very long hair and if his eyes were not mistaken, the woman had red hair. The other one – male – had actually blond hair and it was spiked just like his was. Naruto couldn't see their clothes very well, because of the distance. When they approached, it was the fox who announced their names with a loud growl.

"**Kushina Uzumaki and the Yondaime, so you two were here the entire time."** Kyuubi maintained its growling, but did nothing.

Minato chose to respond instead.

"It's not like we are much thrilled to see you either fox, but if it means seeing our son for the first time, then so be it."

Kushina, for her part, looked at their son's face and wondered why he didn't greet them or even said anything in reply.

* * *

**Author Note**

And that's about it for now.

Anyone who believed Kyuubi was way too much out of character, just know that in this story, the fox ended up developing a bond with Naruto, similar to the one that the Hachibi had with Bee.

Next chapter will be the Namikaze's family interaction as well as Naruto's training with the new form. Instead of only Rasengan based techniques, the techniques in this story will be increased as well.

Please tell me what you think about it.

See ya.


	24. Two suns

**Author Note**

Hello there and welcome to another chapter of Hunter-nin.

I don't know if all of you are accompanying my other story Full Moon, but in the last chapter, I said that I would focus more on both stories in order to finish them in 2011 or at the beginning of 2012. I may bend this rule a little bit so that the others don't appear abandoned to the readers. Perhaps, I'll throw in a couple of chapters of Cursed Eyes, Meshii and Regret here and there, but until I finish both stories – full moon and hunternin – these two will be my main focus. Kingkakashi, if you're reading this, no I did not forget about the story 'After the Storm'.

Now, last chapter, some major events occurred in Naruto's life, starting from the part when he faced his old self at the waterfall of truth. There was a major discussion regarding his doings as a hunter-nin and in the end, the only thing Alter Naruto wanted was for Naruto to focus first in disabling the enemy first, indeed of killing him right away. The last scene was Naruto getting inside his mindscape with the mission of taking the Kyuubi's chakra by force if necessary. In the end, though, he didn't need to do anything, because the fox ended up giving it without a fight.

Now the cliffhanger was the sudden appearance of Naruto's parents inside his mindscape.

Wonder what will happen next? Of course, I won't reserve the entire chapter just for their interaction.

I want to take some time and answer some reviews as I intended not too long ago with all my stories.

* * *

**Shade022** – No, he isn't smart, but that doesn't mean that he is a moron with no concept or ideals of his own. The interaction won't be a matter of who's smarter than the other or who outwitted the other. It will revolve mainly about the concept of family in Naruto's mind or lack thereof.

**Naginator** – A logical person wouldn't blame Kushina for it, but Naruto is not a logical person.

Well, that's about if as far as reviews are concerned.

Now, let's proceed with the chapter.

* * *

**Chapter 24 – Two suns**

**Beta: Kyuubi123**

* * *

Still wearing the new cloak, Naruto stared at the man who called himself Naruto's father. Naruto always imagined what it would be like to see the Yondaime Hokage for the first time. Even before he knew the man to be his father, he always saw Minato as his hero and the type of man he wanted to be in the future. As time progressed, mainly when his hunter-nin phase began, the role model feeling got lost and the only goal he wished to accomplish was to rid Konoha of its criminals, so that no harm could ever come to those he wished to protect. When he knew that the man in front of him was actually his father and knowing that it was him who used Naruto as a prison for the Kyuubi, Naruto's respect for the man remained, but only as a figure of great power and skill, not as his father. The letter wrote by him didn't help things much either.

Looking to the right, Naruto saw the woman that claimed to be his mother.

The way both were looking at the hunter-nin indicated that they were waiting for some kind of reaction coming from him at the prospect of finally meeting his long dead parents. However, the thing was that Naruto wasn't aware of the concept of family. He grew up without knowing the love and care that usually came from being raised by a mother and a father. The only concept of family Naruto was introduced to were the Inuzukas, but at the time, both Kiba and Hana were already adults and high level shinobi.

"Son…" Naruto woke up at the word that came from his mother. "Why are you just sitting there?"

Minato suddenly narrowed his eyes upon seeing the truth in Naruto's eyes.

The boy was reluctant of them. When Naruto got up and closed his eyes, the Yondaime Hokage actually believed that his son would open up to them a bit. When Naruto opened them, though, it was the same expression as before.

"Why are you two repeating the word 'son' to me? For all I know, the so called parents of mine died seventeen years ago." Both Minato and Kushina knew that they would have to explain just how they appeared inside Naruto's mind and why only now.

But they both flinched upon hearing the expression 'so called parents' coming from Naruto's mouth. Kushina moved to explain first, but Minato placed his hand in front of her, ushering for her to let him do the talking.

"It seems we owe you an apology Naruto-kun, for as we have yet to explain how it's possible that we are here. You see…" And so, Minato started explaining everything that happened ever since Kushina went to labor and how a man named Madara managed to free the Kyuubi from within Kushina's stomach when the seal was at its weakest, because of her pregnancy. Naruto was shocked to hear that Kushina was the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki before him, but not once did he interrupt the Yondaime's explanation. Naruto's feelings reduced a bit, once he knew that it all started with the leader of Akatsuki freeing the Kyuubi forcing Minato to seal it back inside Naruto.

* * *

_**(AN: I trust that by now, everyone knows of what happened with Minato, Kushina and Madara, so I'll skip the explanation)**_

* * *

"So, after performing the ritual needed to imprison Kyuubi inside of you, I managed to use my and your mother's last bit of energy and sealed that inside of you. Our essence was linked to the seal that kept the Kyuubi at bay. So when you ripped it off, our link to the seal ended and we appeared. We wanted to be with you so badly Naruto…to see you growing up and shaping up to be a man as you've now become." Like before, there was not a single shed of emotion coming from Naruto, except plain stoicism while looking at them. Naruto had one more event to question them about.

Minato wanted for the blond to open up now that he realized that a part of his parents lives inside of him.

"Is this Madara, the same one that leads the Akatsuki? Uchiha Madara…?"

Minato and Kushina knew who Akatsuki was, because they were a part of Naruto's life, so they got to see everything. Minato nodded and explained a bit more.

"At the time, we engaged in battle and I managed to wound him, but the Kyuubi was far more important to deal with than him. I know that you may be angry with me for what I had to…"

"No. Not really."

Naruto's answer shocked the man, before he smiled at his son. "As Hokage, you had to save the village from the fox. Therefore, you picked me because I happened to be born at the exact same time. I get it." Minato knew when to trust his instincts and his instincts were telling him that perhaps he misinterpreted Naruto's words a bit. The younger blond so far haven't call them as either kaa-san or tou-san and he looked at Minato and Kushina as if he didn't recognize them as such. "As a father, though, the story is different, isn't it? I've read the letter you wrote to me, Yondaime. Sorry, but I was expecting something more than what everyone told me about your so called reasons. The part of the Kyuubi, I'm pissed yes. But if complained about that, I'd be a spoiled selfish brat that preferred himself over the entire village; even if I only concluded this a few years ago."

Kushina remained silent throughout the whole ordeal as it pained her to see their son battling them so fiercely. Minato was narrowing his eyes, thinking what Naruto meant by that 'the part of the Kyuubi'. Was there another reason he could be mad at them?

"What would the other part be, Naruto?"

Asked the Yondaime, before he widened his eyes at what he saw. Naruto immediately vanished from his usual position and appeared right in front of him, landing a strong punch on the Yondaime's stomach. Kushina was shocked. Even in pain, Minato looked up and saw the first level of emotion coming from the blond. He was shaking from clear anger. His eyes were going from blue in color to fiercely red just like the beast that was resting behind them. Whatever it was, it had something to do with the letter he had written to Naruto as a way of explaining to him his reasons for everything he did right before his death. Suddenly Naruto, through clenched teeth, began to speak.

"Ever since I was little, I was alone. Ever since I was little, I didn't know my parents. Ever since I was little, I didn't know why I was abandoned. Everything related to you was S-ranked secret decreed by the Sandaime Hokage. For all intents and purposes, even I couldn't know who you two were. Everyone knew about it, but me. But they couldn't and wouldn't tell me anything from fear of breaking the law. So I grew up never knowing who my parents were or the reason why I was alone in the world. I didn't know if my parents died or if they abandoned me because of some pathetic reason. Even Sandaime-jiji, the only person who had ever helped me in the past, couldn't divulge that information. Nothing! Not even your names or reasons for abandoning me alone in the world, he couldn't tell me from fear of me finding out the truth. When I've read your letter, stating that it was by your request Yondaime, I was furious. If you two were inside of me this whole time, you'll know how it was that I came to know who my father was." Naruto waited for Minato and Kushina to look towards the floor. Yes, they knew it alright, but Naruto wasn't going to wait for them to answer.

"Yes, it was the damn Sandaime Tsushikage, who wanted nothing more than to kill me at the Chunnin Exams that happened inside Iwagakure".

"Naruto, your…" Kushina wanted to somehow ease her son's anger, but Naruto didn't even let her.

"All I ever wanted to know was who you were. I never asked for a public announcement of the fact that I was the Yondaime's son. Do either of you know what is like to never know the reason why your parents abandoned you? At the time, I was so angry at Sarutobi-Jiji for not telling me that I would run away from him at times. If only I knew that he was only honoring your last request of not saying anything to me, simply because the entire hidden village of the rock hated your guts. Add that to the fact that you placed the strongest tailed beast inside of me. How do you think I felt all this time? Oh and it was the best thing learning from the enemy instead of those I came to love." For the life of him, Naruto didn't know what happened to him, to be controlled so easily by his emotions right now. Truth was that he was compensating for a lot of pent up anger that he repressed it with a big goofy smile on his face. The boy turned away from his parents for a while and looked down to see his reflection from the water surface. He saw his mother coming from behind and suddenly enveloping him in a hug, without speaking a single word.

For some reason, though, the blond felt something inside of him relaxing. His golden cloak already left him and the black suit returned.

The blond just closed his eyes and let the woman comfort him. Naruto knew that Kushina wasn't the one to blame for any of this. But it was different. It was not logic that made him so relaxed. It was something he didn't have a name for.

"Whether or not you realize it Naruto-kun, I'm your mother. I've watched you when you were just a tiny person. We have a connection, you and me that goes far beyond anything. I know you're mad at us and we both know it was tough for you. I was a jinchuuriki as well you know." She released the hug and gently caressed her son's face with a peaceful smile on her face. Naruto couldn't help but remember Hana right now. They both had the same smile when looking at him. Kushina knew Naruto's thoughts and saw the one who captured her son's heart. She broke the hug and ushered her son to take a seat next to her so that they could catch up some.

"So Naruto-koi, tell me about Inuzuka Tsume's daughter a bit. From what I could see, you've been spending quite a lot of time with her." Naruto smiled and nodded at his mother, before telling the story since the time he and Hana participated in a joint mission to hunt her uncle, who kidnapped the sons of Tsume's dog and escaped the village soon afterward. Obviously, Naruto kept the private parts out of Kushina's reach. Kushina just kept smiling throughout the tale, not once losing the smile on her face. One of the things she regretted most in her life was never having the chance to have quality time with her son.

* * *

**===With Minato===**

Minato kept looking at the scene shared between mother and son and smiled deeply. He knew that the boy wouldn't be like that with him, considering the choices he was forced to make. Instead of reaching the two, the Yondaime Hokage walked calmly towards the creature that started this entire mess and ruined his family's life as well as many families in his home village. When he and Kushina appeared, Kyuubi was almost entirely furless, which was a result of his chakra being sucked by Naruto. By now, though, the fox's chakra was slowly returning as its fur was growing back once more. A sudden thought passed through his head that the Kyuubi was now free from his cage and would harm his son.

His thought apparently was foreseen by the fox which, for its part, looked at the man from the corner of its right eye and snorted at him.

"**You needn't worry about my freedom, Yondaime. The chakra chain, created by my former jinchuuriki, still keeps me trapped and your son can always recreate the cage and trap me. Even if I didn't have restraints, I wouldn't do anything. You can thank your son for earning my respect as the first jinchuuriki who managed to do that."** Minato nodded, despite knowing that for Naruto to earn the fox's respect, his hands must be soaked in blood. Naruto's hunter-nin career was no secret to him and Kushina, simply because they'd been there with him. Naruto's resolve in ridding the world of criminals may be a noble goal, but it's a path filled by darkness and blood. There was a reason why no hunter-nin managed to remain as such for long periods of time. With time, the hunter-nin becomes addictive to killing, therefore his judgment becomes clouded.

"You are a bloodthirsty demon, after all Kyuubi. No wonder Naruto managed to earn your respect. Now, there is one thing I'm more worried about."

"**What is it?"**

"I'm well aware of your bond to Uchiha Madara and if by chance, Naruto gets to face him in battle, I'm worried that he'll use you against my son." Kyuubi snarled at the mention of the name and wondered which one was on top of the list of humans whose flesh Kyuubi wanted to digest: the Yondaime or Uchiha Madara. However, the fox did recognize merit in Minato's concern. Despite being the strongest tailed beast, that damn Uchiha Madara was always able to control the fox through that blasted Sharingan of his. Seventeen years ago, Kyuubi was extracted from Kushina's body by Madara's hand and after that, the Uchiha hypnotized the beast.

Now, he was inside Naruto's body, so Madara would have to extract the beast first.

"**Have you no faith in your own work, Yondaime? Despite hating your guts and wishing that I was ripping your flesh right now, your seal is quite remarkable and infuriating at the same time. Even I, with my power, couldn't breach it. Madara may be powerful, but compared to me, he's but a fly in comparison to a giant." **Kyuubi, now, was sitting like a dog, a quiet and obedient dog, in Minato's eyes. He couldn't feel the fox's oppressive aura like he was used to. It was almost _normal _to be around the creature. Perhaps, his son managed the impossible and managed to _tame _the strongest tailed beast in existence.

"My seal keeps you at bay Kyuubi, but it isn't effective against outside influences. If Madara ever gets a hold on Naruto, he'll manage to extract you."

"**Unlike Kushina, who was pregnant at the time, Naruto won't be in that position. Plus, I can offer aid as much as needed." **

"A demon bonding with a human, I thought I'd seen it all during my days". Minato knew the situation didn't call for such a remark, but he couldn't help it. Kyuubi was the source of agony for every living being in Konohagakure and perhaps other villages as well. It wasn't so easy to believe that such a being found within itself to respect one single human, even if this person happened to be Minato's son. Quickly grabbing the scroll from within his white coat, he extended a scroll to the fox. "This is the first and last gift that I will ever give to my son, Kyuubi. Since you witnessed it first hand, I trust you will be able to teach him my prized technique, the **Hiraishin no Jutsu**."

The fox looked at the scroll for a while, before crossing eyes with the Yondaime once more.

"**What makes you trust me with this, Yondaime? Why not infuse the scroll in his memory?" **Kyuubi asked, before he saw the smirk in Minato's face.

"The moment the seal was ripped, the knowledge of the Hiraishin was transferred to him. He isn't aware of it now, because so much is happening at once. But once he leaves this place, he'll know how to perform it. My special kunais were kept by sensei Jiraiya and it was meant for him to deliver them to Naruto once he acquired the knowledge for it. Indeed, everything I did for him ended up hurting him in the long run and for that, I can't express how filled with regret I am, at least not with words anyway." Minato said as he looked towards Naruto and Kushina. "He may never grant me the same treatment as my wife, and that's ok. I cannot change the past, but I can aid him in the future."

"**Are you expecting a sympathetic shoulder to cry on, Yondaime? I couldn't care less about your regret. What matters is that I and the brat kill our enemies. With my energy, his speed will already improve. With your technique, he'll be able to face even Madara and be victorious. Now, I can feel that your essence is running low on energy. It feels me with joy knowing that I'll never see your face anymore." **Despite the continuous jab, Minato nodded. He felt relieved as well as he wouldn't see the fox anymore. He simply gave the fox his back and walked towards Naruto and Kushina.

Both his and her image began to fade and he could see Naruto's worried expression.

Naruto and Kushina turned to see Minato approaching and ended their conversation. Both father and son locked eyes for a moment, before Minato smiled. Naruto had a focused determination written all over his face. He was proud of the boy, who now became a man. What filled his heart even more was that Naruto managed to overcome strong boundaries to reach this level and he did it without any help. He only needed to express this feeling to his son, even if Naruto wasn't willing to listen.

"Naruto, I know that my actions weren't the best and I'm sorry for that. Please know that I'm proud of you son for the man you became and the man you're about to become as well. Both as a father and a Hokage, you managed to earn my respect, even if the feeling is not mutual." Right now, Kushina began to cry as she didn't wish for Minato's last words to their son be received with hatred. Right now, Naruto merely looked at them with apathy. Despite it all and much to their relief, his opinion ended up being much more rational than it should have been, considering the pain and suffering endured throughout his life.

Naruto wouldn't waste this opportunity.

"Seventeen years is too much to overcome in less than five minutes. As I said before, as a Hokage, I understood why you did what you did. Dealing with the nine-tailed fox as well as handling the situation between Konoha and Iwagakure requires concentration and time. You didn't have that. As a father, though I can't just simply say the same about what happened in the past. So much happened as I grew up and I can't just pretend it never happened. I'll move forward though and accept your gift as your first and last given from father to son. Despite it all, you remain my idol and role model. May I be as strong as you are, Tou-san and as caring as you are Kaa-san towards my loved ones." Both Minato and Kushina looked at each other surprised, but it didn't last long, before they smiled at their son. Naruto just bowed in respect and it ended up being the last image both Kushina and Minato saw before their essence vanished forever. After they were gone, Naruto looked at his hands with a new vigor as he used his transformation once more, before looking at the fox who was now resting in front of him.

With everyone's help, he'll manage to defeat every one of his enemies. Right now, it was time to train in this new form in order to get used to it as well as adapt the Hiraishin to his fighting style.

* * *

**===Outside his mindscape===**

When Naruto opened his eyes he saw Jiraiya, Yamato and the Mizukage looking at him as if expecting to see who would come out. Naruto was supposed to fight the Kyuubi for dominance, but who's to say the fox couldn't take possession of his body for good. When Naruto opened his eyes, he saw three set of eyes looking at him and he could tell that they were ready for battle if need be. It took him a couple of seconds to realize the merit behind their fear. Only he knew the bond shared with the fox and as far as they could tell, Kyuubi could simply use this opportunity and take control of Naruto's body instead of Naruto taking possession of the fox's chakra. Slowly getting up with his eyes closed, Naruto cleared a bit of dust from his clothes, before looking at his comrades once more. The lack of response caused them to be in doubt regarding who was in control right now and to Naruto, it was rather amusing.

"Why are you all staring at me like that?" His familiar voice eased the tension and Jiraiya smirked at him.

"I take it that the procedure was successful?" Naruto just nodded his head and showed everyone the result of the procedure. His body was transformed once more as the gold energy surrounded him. Jiraiya took a while to study the markings on his body, hoping that his mind would show him just where he last saw them. Its design was familiar, but he couldn't place it. He opted to let it go for now and start the next and possibly last part of Naruto's training. Like the Hachibi Jinchuuriki, Naruto would have to learn how to use tendrils as if it were his limbs. The Raikage's brother managed to summon the Hachibi's tendrils and use them in attacks and defenses.

"Jiraiya, if possible, could I speak with you in private for a while?" Naruto asked, as he deactivated his transformation.

The pervert looked at his student for a while, before nodding. He followed Naruto, while wondering what the boy wanted to talk to him about. And why in private, considering the circumstances. Looking briefly to his back, he saw both Yamato and the Mizukage looking at him. He was thankful that the Mizukage didn't oppose Naruto's request, allowing Jiraiya some margin to handle whatever Naruto was about to tell him about. Once alone, Naruto started telling the pervert everything that happened once he closed his eyes and entered in his mindscape. Jiraiya listened intently as Naruto told him everything. When the hunter-nin mentioned Minato and Kushina's names, though, Jiraiya's eyes were widened and his mouth hanged open, giving access to any lonely fly to get inside.

"Are you saying that your parents imprinted their essence in the seal? Wow, even now, that guy amazes me."

Naruto nodded and explained their level of interaction or lack thereof. Jiraiya frowned at Naruto's behavior towards his own father, but kept it to himself. The boy was, after all, old enough to realize where his feelings were regarding his parents. After explaining their interaction, Naruto told Jiraiya that Minato left the instructions of the Yondaime's most prized jutsu inside the seal that was responsible for holding the Kyuubi at bay. The pervert smiled at his deceased student. Any and all knowledge regarding the Hiraishin no Jutsu was destroyed by Minato himself a couple of hours before the Kyuubi's arrival in Konoha. For a great number of reasons, the Yondaime opted not to share his jutsu with others. Now he understood why. It would be Minato's first and only gift to his son Naruto. Now, the only one with knowledge of the technique was Naruto. Jiraiya collected a scroll from inside his red jacket and gave to Naruto.

"He asked me to keep this safe from his enemy's grasp. But from what you told me, he always intended for me to give it to you."

The blond smiled at this and accepted the scroll, before storing it inside his own leather jacket. He would have to come up with some way of using the special kunai apart from the regular ones. Perhaps a storage seal tattooed near one of his wrist or something like that. Right now, getting used to this new form took precedence. His speed would have to be adjusted and even his movements because of it. Once the pair discussed everything, they returned to the place where Yamato and the Mizukage were, only to see that they were busy arguing about elemental bloodlines. Apparently, the Mizukage was aware of one shinobi using the wood element and Yamato was aware of her Boil and Lava elements as well. They were now discussing which would prevail. Choosing to leave them be for the moment, he activated his transformation once more.

"So now that I've managed to achieve this level, what's next?" Naruto asked Jiraiya.

"Now, let's understand this new transformation of yours. According to the source, the energy that surrounds you right now it's nothing but chakra, even if not blue like usual. It's the mixture of your chakra with the Kyuubi's. That being said, you should be able to mold it into extra limbs. First we will focus on molding the extra limbs. Then you will have to control your strength through them. There is a set of boulders nearby that should be great for this purpose." Naruto nodded, before looking at his hands for a while. Molding the energy around him should be like molding his chakra, even if it required a lot more chakra than normal.

He began focusing his energy towards molding the extra limb through his right hand and was surprised when a pillar of gold erupted from his hands upwards. Focusing smaller quantity of chakra, he managed to diminish the pillar, until it became recognizable. It was actually a limb, a long one with a hand at the end with three fingers and one opposable thumb. Smiling, Naruto closed his eyes and began to play with this new ability by creating limbs from his head, from his arms, legs, knees, biceps, triceps, his back, etc. Still experimenting, he extended his right hand with its palm facing up, before focusing two sets of _hands _coming from both sides of his actual hand. The real hand molded the Rasengan, while the other limbs manipulated the wind chakra. And right in front of everyone's eyes, Naruto managed to perform his Rasenshuriken using one hand.

"That's only the beginning, brat. You could use it to mold jutsus without even using your actual hands. You could also create a new taijutsu style that is focused on using multiple limbs against an opponent."

Naruto nodded with a smile at Jiraiya's input and continued playing some more. He vanished from his position and grabbed his sword, while two limbs were busy doing hand seals. He could feel his chakra being molded, before he ignited the chakra inside his lungs. And without even losing his sword, Naruto managed to unleash a great fireball technique. Swinging his sword against imaginary opponents, Naruto performed a specific kenjutsu kata, while at the same time, doing hand seals with his extra limbs. As he finished the attack, he released a thin air current, before it expanded violently. His imaginary opponents were sent flying. Naruto wasn't finished and he used his extra limbs, in order to grab a nearby boulder. He was surprised when he crushed the boulder like it was nothing.

"It seems we now must exert control over those limbs of yours."

Jiraiya smiled as he directed Naruto to a place were a lot of boulders were situated.

* * *

**===With Madara===**

On top of the mountain, one Uchiha Madara was standing, now wearing his old uniform and his battle fan strapped behind his body. Next to him was his second in command and wielder of the Rinnegan, all six bodies of Pain. What was different about this scene, now, was the seven shadows behind them. When the sunlight illuminated the area, their identities were revealed as being the seven jinchuurikis, except Gaara whose body ended up being captured by the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki. Madara reasoned that he waited too long for this moment and that he would no doubt achieve his ultimate goal, the ultimate Tsukyomi technique and the control of the entire elemental nations.

Right now, the army created by the five villages was facing an army of his creation. Using Shukaku's energy, Madara managed to create an army of white Zetsu. He already had accounted the losses of his army because of the village elites. However, the army had one purpose and that was to tire the strong ones and kill the weak ones, so that he could deal with the rest. In the end, the alliance would be too tired to stand against he, Pein and seven jinchuurikis at the same time.

* * *

**===At the Allaince's Hospital Tent===**

As soon as the war started, shinobis from the alliance appeared at the Alliance's Hospital Tents, in order to heal. Some of them came with nasty bruises, others came in near death state, forcing the joint staff to do everything they could to heal them. The major villages managed to come up with a sound plan to attend as many wounded as possible, by forming groups of tree medic-nins. From Konoha, were at least two hundred medic-nins, counting Shizune, Sakura and Inuzuka Hana. Even if she was technically a veterinarian, fixing chakra paths required similar procedures, so she ended up being partnered with Shizune and a medic from Kumogakure. Hana's face was determined as he did her job healing an Iwa kunoichi by removing a good set of shurikens from her back, while using medical chakra to ease the pain. Akatsuki wanted to capture her Naruto and she would do everything she could to heal these shinobi and kunoichi, so that they could aid in his protection.

Of course, she wanted to stay with him, but right now, the alliance needed every available medic to help heal the ninjas.

She just hoped that he was alright.

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

Jiraiya, Yamato and the Mizukage stood side by side as they watched the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki training with his new transformation. So far, all he has done was pick up boulders and pile them to form a column right in front of him. This way, he could be able to pick up objects on the ground without destroying them. Also, Naruto could use his limbs to increase the pace of his movements, thus surprising the enemy. Building up the column and then taking the boulder out one by one was his routine for the better part of two hours. When it was over, the blond realized that he could use his new limbs correctly, without fear of applying more pressure than necessary.

"Ok Naruto, let's now proceed with the last transformation."

The amused look on Jiraiya's face was received with skepticism by the blond. After all, according to the pervert himself, this was supposed to be the last transformation.

"What are you talking about? I thought this was the last transformation." By this time, Naruto deactivated his golden transformation and walked towards Jiraiya with a bewildered look on his face.

"The Raikage's brother was considered the perfect jinchuuriki for a reason, Naruto. He managed to obtain a bonding level with his bijuu so great that he even managed to fully transform into the beast itself. The Yondaime Raikage assured me that if your level of bonding is as good as you say it is, you can transform into the Kyuubi just as easily." All four eyes were widened instantly at Jiraiya's proclamation. Jiraiya's eccentricity was no mystery to the elemental nations, so everything that came out of his mouth normally was meant with skepticism. This time, though, it became serious and the blond imagined if it was possible to transform and take the shape of the fox.

"You just have to imagine the shape of the Kyuubi in your mind and focus on releasing all that chakra you took from the fox."

The blond understood it right away what was needed to be done, but even then, he felt reluctant to do so. He may have created a bond with the fox, but what would happen if he transformed. Both Yamato and the Mizukage admitted not sharing Jiraiya's optimistic view. They were concerned, since there was no telling what would happen if Naruto transformed into the fox. To this date, the seal that prevented the fox from escaping was an work of art and no one could testify its strength and if would be enough against a free nine tailed demon, even if it was fabricated by the Yondaime Hokage of all people.

Naruto closed his eyes for a while as if getting into terms with what he was about to do. All of a sudden, he opened his eyes and pictured the fox in every detail, while releasing all the chakra he could muster at the same time.

It was the first time the Mizukage felt truly afraid as she witnessed the majestic form of the fox right in front of her.

* * *

**Author Note**

And here we go, here's the second chapter of a series of five.

I would like to explain that I'm not going to take the real Madara's appearance into consideration. As far as this story is concerned, Madara is the one behind the mask, period.

Kishimoto is still due to reveal who the masked guy is and I don't wish to reveal my entire work and explain this mess. I'll probably save it for my other stories, though. As to Naruto's transformation at the end of the chapter, in this story, he and Kyuubi have a much deeper bond, perhaps comparable to the one shared by Hachibi and Kirabi. That being said, Naruto was able to transform into the nine tailed demon form. What other powers will be at Naruto's reach now that he managed to transform? Perhaps, he'll manage the Bijuu Ball or even the beam used against Orochimaru when he transformed into the four-tailed form?

Please review.

Now, it has come to my attention that two fan fiction readers had created a poll in order to find the best fan fiction writer or the top 10, I believe. Their codenames are brown phantom and Zentary. Let it be known that the mere nomination is honor enough for me. I wonder if I can ever match the same fame as Kingkakashi, maverick9871 and Kenshi618, PsychoG, froznfox72, lord of the land of fire, EroSlackerMicha. Their stories are absolutely amazing and have reached the bar of 3k reviews quite easily. They, along as others I eventually forgot to quote, are great writers with too many creative ideas.

However, if you feel I'm worthy of your vote, then I will definitely appreciate it.

See ya.


	25. Training and fatherhood

**Author Note**

Hello there and welcome to another chapter of Hunter-nin.

To the fans of hunter-nin, I'd like to say sorry for mostly abandoning this story, in favor of the others. I had a lot of ideas for the other stories, so I chose them over this one, which is almost finished.

Also, I'd like to rectify previous information about this fic. This should have been the third chapter of a series of five needed to end the story. However, I believe it unwise to rush things like that. If I were to use only three chapters for what I'm planning, then each chapter would be quite extensive. I learned from my experience in writing fan fictions that epic length chapters tend to be just that…too long. The readers get fed up with reading nonstop and all the chapter planning is thereby ruined. I'm not saying that it will take more or less than three chapters for me to finish the story. It's just that I don't wish to commit the same mistake with Full Moon and update the last chapter of the series out of nowhere.

The story is close to finish, of that I can assure you.

Now, last chapter, Naruto managed to reach complete control over the fox's chakra by not only using its chakra and completely fusing with his own, but also managing to fully transform into the fox. However, for those who remained with him throughout the training, Naruto was gone and in his place appeared the fox. The Mizukage was deeply scared as she knew what the fox was responsible for a long time ago. What will happen now, they wonder?

Here goes the chapter

* * *

**Chapter 25 – Training and fatherhood**

**Beta: Kyuubi123**

* * *

The sight before everyone had brought back memories from seventeen years ago. Both Yamato and Jiraiya remembered how close to soiling themselves they were upon seeing the beast for the first time. The sannin admittedly behaved much better than the mokuton user as Yamato was a mere infant at the time. The beast was growling at them and it even started drooling with saliva as it looked at the shinobi like they were a healthy snack. All three of them were already prepared for the worst. Jiraiya, for the life of him, couldn't figure out what happened wrong as he looked at the gigantic beast. All of a sudden, as he beast suddenly started laughing.

"Hahaahahhaha...you all should have seen the looks on your faces." Naruto laughed with his voice, even if a bit altered because of the transformation.

The shinobi in front of the nine-tailed beast, despite not believing it was indeed Naruto in front of them, sighed in dismay at the blond's practical joke. Kyuubi's image alone was enough to scare less willed minded to death. Nevertheless, they figured that like the Hachibi Jinchuuriki, Naruto right now managed to exert complete control over his tailed beast, though that was taking into consideration that the blond had actually pulled it off. For all they knew, the fox might be playing tricks with their minds. To put their minds at ease, the blond transformed once more. Before the other ninja's very eyes, the fox started diminishing in size until pieces of the hunter-nin's clothes started appearing. The entire transformation took no more than a minute, before Naruto appeared in front of Jiraiya, Mei and Yamato just like they saw him before he transformed into the nine-tailed beast Kyuubi no Yoko.

"Nice job, kid. Now, I believe you earned some rest time. We'll start practicing your first transformation in the middle of combat. First, you'll fight against Yamato."

Naruto nodded and went to his room to rest for a while. He at first considered telling Jiraiya that he didn't need rest, but that would be far from the truth. He has been training non-stop for the entire day using the fox's chakra. His chakra coils were strained from mixing both his chakra and the fox's. If he were to overstrain it, surely it would lead to him being bedridden for quite a while. Plus, with the much appreciated rest, it gave him time to ponder on his next course of action. Not a single part of his body wished to remain behind bars for the entire duration of the war. He knew, though, that simply leaving this place and joining the battlefield would be close to impossible, at least by force. Neither the location nor the people guarding him were chosen randomly. Naruto figured that he could be a match for Yamato without using the fox's chakra. With it, he was sure that neither Jiraiya nor the Mizukage would manage to keep him at bay without hurting him. The problem however was that Yamato could use his abilities to suppress the fox's chakra, therefore narrowing his chances of fleeing this accursed prison.

It just wasn't right…Akatsuki was his enemy, not the entire world.

It just didn't make sense that all the five nations had to mobilize just to rid the world of one organization. Now that he gained new sources of power, he would be able to beat his enemies. He was already able to stand up against Kisame with just one-tail of the fox's chakra. The shark member of the Akatsuki was one tough shinobi amongst their ranks. He doubted that the rest were that much stronger than the now deceased Kiri missing-nin. A long sigh escaped Naruto's mouth as he smoothly landed on his bed and looked outside the window for a bit. Complaining about the situation wasn't going to take him very far. Perhaps if he demonstrates his strength and trains hard, the others will see that Naruto never needed protection in the first place. In order to do that, he would need to defeat both Jiraiya and the Mizukage, not only one-on-one, but at the same time. It was considered quite ludicrous to believe himself capable of defeating two kage-level shinobi on his own.

Somehow, Naruto figured that asking nicely was out of the question. Therefore, he was at a loss.

Without much left to ponder about, the blond closed his eyes to rest, not at all prepared for what was going on with his lover.

* * *

**===At the Alliance's Hospital Tent===**

While Naruto's training was proceeding, the war was as well, which meant that by the minute, more and more wounded shinobi arrived at the hospital tent to be healed. The joint medical staff was working double shifts in order to attend everyone, but even so many needed to wait. They were giving preference to near fatal injuries. Those who had to wait were the ones with chakra depletion diseases, fractured limbs and minor skin burn marks. A couple of the medic-nins didn't possess an acceptable chakra supply in order to keep the double shifts and many even succumbed to exhaustion in the middle of a surgery. Inuzuka Hana was able to count at least two times when she had to cover for another's position, because of chakra depletion.

Her feral tendencies added by the stress of double shifts increased her level of stress in having to deal with this situation.

Her chakra supply was larger because of her constant missions apart from attending sick animals at Konoha's veterinarian hospital. Therefore, her chakra capacity was constantly increasing by each battle. After healing a major wound on a Kumo chunnin's leg, she released the guy and wiped the sweat of her forehead. Her shift was almost over, her second one in fact, and quite soon she would be able to rest a bit. She once more entered into medic mode when a genin kunoichi from Iwagakure entered her tent. Her arm was filled with shuriken and was about to faint from the amount of blood lost. Quickly screaming to the suppliers for a blood transfusion, Hana worked quickly and used medical chakra in order to yank the projectiles without further opening the many wounds on her arm. Hana could see the girl flinching at each one, but resumed to her work without bothering to offer any comfort to the wounded girl.

If she did that, the girl would be dead.

After Hana took the projectiles away, she received the blood bag from one of the medics who was aiding her and began the procedure while closing the wounds. The genin was now unconscious, due to the pain but Hana was one hundred percent sure that she wasn't in any risk of losing her life due to the wounds. It took ten minutes to patch the genin, before releasing her to the infirmary. No sooner had she release the kunoichi, her break began as soon as Sakura entered to cover for her. No pleasantries were exchanged between the two, as Sakura was one of Naruto's comrades in the past. The cold treatment was due to Naruto's genin class not even bothering about him anymore when he joined the hunter-nin division. Apart from her brother Kiba and Aburame Shino, everyone seemed to forget that Naruto even existed. Releasing her medical bandana and the red rubber band that held her ponytail in place, Inuzuka Hana threw her hair back with force, while releasing an exhausted sigh. Today it was tougher than usual and she didn't know how much longer she could take it before succumbing to exhaustion.

Suddenly, though, Hana began to feel nauseated and ran to the nearest bathroom, before vomiting in the toilet.

Ever since the war had begun, the same thing happened to Hana every day, without apparent reason. Hana even observed some changes to her body as of late, being quite an observant girl. She had noticed that, a few seconds before the nausea, she felt a strong stomachache. Other times, she was alone and thus no one suspected anything. This time, though, the Inuzuka woman wasn't alone in the bathroom. Shizune heard her throwing up and came immediately to her booth, which happened to be open.

"Are you alright, Hana-san?" The sudden voice alerted Hana. If someone knew that this was going on, no doubt repercussions would arise.

"I'm alright, Shizune-taichou. Working two shifts caused a lot of strain in my chakra coils. I just need some rest." As captain of the Konoha's medical team, it was required of Shizune to memorize the files of the Konoha medic-nin. As such, she knew that Hana was the one amongst few that possessed the largest amount of chakra from the group. While it was true that the amount of work could lead to this symptom, Shizune knew that Hana had worse days and wasn't ill afterward. Using her diagnostics jutsu, Shizune approached her hands closer to Hana, who at first protested saying that she was fine and only needed rest. The captain, though, wasn't buying by the look on her face.

"I'm responsible for the wellbeing of Konoha's medics, Hana-san. I need to be certain of what you're saying." Hana growled a little, but relented. In the end, she would now know what the cause of her nausea was.

Shizune took close to five minutes with the jutsu, before widening her eyes in realization upon figuring out the cause. Hana looked at her face and immediately worried.

"Hana-san, you're pregnant." The Inuzuka medic's eyes widened instantly, doubting her healing capabilities for a while and why now? Her last love making with Naruto was vicious and she remembered how lost she was because of the raging hormones, but she couldn't remember how it ended. A smile appeared on her face upon remembering how driven she was to simply ravish her bedroom with her lover. Hana began to close her eyes, which alarmed Shizune. Hana only remembered hearing her captain screaming for assistance, before closing her eyes. What was left of her chakra was being directed to the infant inside her womb. Acting quickly, Shizune called a couple of medics to assist her while telling the member of the Yamanaka clan that resided in the medical tent, to communicate what happened. She needed to remove Hana from the field immediately and send her to Tsunade-sama's care. She knew that Hana was Naruto's girlfriend and couldn't help but smile upon knowing that in nine months, they would have a child, provided of course that the alliance is successful in this war.

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

Unaware of the sudden responsibility that befell him, Naruto was training with his first transformed form, surrounded by gold energy. Right now, he had settled for speed and endurance training against Jiraiya and Yamato. Both would use the Kage Shuriken jutsu and throw multiple projectiles at the transformed hunter-nin, who would use his extra speed and a lone kunai to block the ones he couldn't dodge. The golden trail left by his moves were astounding to those present as Naruto would appear in one side and after a blink, in another side. Letting loose of the kunai, the hunter-nin adapted his extra limbs in order to parry as many shuriken as possible, while maintaining the same speed. Jiraiya swore that he couldn't tell between father and son's speed as he saw how the hunter-nin was moving throughout the cave as if he was teleporting to his new position.

It was clear that regarding speed, Naruto was all set.

Now it was time for ninjutsu utilizing his extra limbs. Jiraiya had a theory that Naruto could create whole new rasengan type jutsus, seeing as Naruto could use extra limbs to perform certain tasks of the spiraling ball technique. Naruto, being the ninjutsu fanatic, became excited and went to work immediately. He quickly performed two rasengan in each hand, before using his four extra limbs and mold, in each, one rasengan. Out of the blue, Naruto was holding six mid-sized rasengan overall. Those weren't like the rasenshuriken, so he couldn't throw them. Dissipating the six balls of energy, Naruto then gathered all six of his limbs – two regular and four golden limbs – and placed them in front of him, before molding a huge amount of chakra for a much larger rasengan. The arms started to work immediately and within seconds, Naruto managed to create a four meter diameter rasengan. While the one he could create with sage chakra was much larger, this one had more condensed energy, which could cause quite an impact. Moving on to _elemental _rasengan, Naruto created one rasenshuriken in one hand using the help of the limb to add the wind element. He used the other hand to create another rasenshuriken, thus creating a new jutsu once uniting both techniques one hidden below the other.

_Fuuton Kage Rasenshuriken (Wind Release: Shadow Spiral Shuriken Technique) _

If one was not enough and the enemy either dodged or evaded it, he wouldn't notice the other hidden one, until it was too late. The hunter-nin was on fire with the techniques, showing how creative he could be regarding ninjutsu. They let his mind work free as Naruto pondered on reducing the size of the rasenshuriken, thus reducing the time needed to finish the technique. If he needed an entire hand to do the regular one, then he could perhaps use a finger for one small spiral shuriken technique. Using his pointing finger and creating two small limbs from it, Naruto managed to mold a miniature sized rasenshuriken, before throwing at a considerably sized rock in front of him. The poor rock formation was sliced clearly in half, before being shredded because of the rasengan force.

_Fuuton Mini Rasenshuriken (Wind Release: Mini Shadow Spiral Shuriken Technique_

As long as he was letting his creativity loose, why not use more than one finger, thus creating multiple mini rasenshuriken. Quickly opening both hands and placing his fingers up, he extended two limbs per finger and focused a large amount of chakra in order to mold ten mini rasenshuriken. This time, though, he took more time finishing all ten of them, then performing the regular rasenshuriken. It was no less dangerous, though, as he threw all ten of the mini spiral shuriken technique.

_Fuuton Mini Rasenshuriken Renda (Wind Release: Mini Shadow Spiral Shuriken Barrage Technique)_

Naruto's creativity was good enough for one more technique. He was thinking of offense so far as the rasengan was primarily an offensive technique. However, his mind was conjuring possible defensive capabilities. The problem with the rasengan is that its highly condensed energy makes it highly volatile upon impact. However, if Naruto could increase the control over it, hardening the spiraling ball with more wind chakra, then he could create a sizeable defense that can be placed in front of him. Doing the same as with four diameter rasengan, Naruto placed his six limbs in front of him and started manipulating the rasengan while adding more wind chakra than necessary. In front of him, was a gigantic rasenshuriken, similar in size to when Naruto expanded the regular one. Turning the technique vertically, like a helicopter falling down, Naruto could protect himself against the majority of both elemental and non-elemental techniques, excluding only fire techniques.

_Fuuton Rasenshuriken Heki (Wind Release: Spiral Shuriken Wall Technique)_

He already had an earth jutsu suited for defending himself against fire techniques, so he was all set. If the enemy had an S-ranked technique against him, which wasn't fire oriented, he could defend against it. Turning to the group behind him, still enveloped by the golden aura, he looked at all three's faces seeing different looks. Jiraiya, of course, was smirking at the different techniques. The pervert after all knew better than believing that Naruto would accomplish less than what he demonstrated, using the chakra of the nine-tails. Yamato's eyes were threatening to leave their sockets as he didn't believe the amount of destruction that Naruto was capable of and that was only using rasengan based techniques. Surely, Naruto's other techniques would be much more powerful than before. The Mizukage was shocked as well. She remembered battling Yagura in full control of his bijuu, but it paled in comparison to what Naruto was demonstrating. A rational part of her mind conjured that Kyuubi was three times as powerful as the Sanbi, so it was only logical to assume that Naruto was stronger.

She actually started believing that perhaps hiding Naruto instead of using him in the war was wrong.

Needless to say that the initial plan of placing Naruto against Yamato was actually a bad idea. If they were to train the boy, all three of them needed to team up against him, in order to pose a challenge. The Mizukage wasn't aware of this, but Naruto was actually counting on them attacking all at once. He had two times as much limbs, so it was only logical to place three enemies against him, instead of only one. The boy was indeed strong, but could he hold his own against a Kage, a sannin and an elite jounin and former Anbu captain? Only time would tell. Mei wasn't actually looking forward to facing either of the techniques just now displayed.

* * *

**=== Alliance's Central Building===**

Slowly opening her eyes, Inuzuka Hana awakened at the alliance hospital tent, or so she thought. Yesterday's events were slowly returning to her, before the ultimate bomb slapped her in the face. She was pregnant. Her current distress about the situation was in no way related to being a mother, or even who the father was. Kami knew that with the amount of love making between her and Naruto, there was a good possibility that at least two or three babies would be conceived because of it. Anti-pregnancy techniques were first made for victims of rape. That being said, it just doesn't work every time she had sex with her boyfriend. One time or another, Hana was bound to conceive a child. That being said, her current distress wasn't any of these reasons, nor any sense of regret regarding the couple's lack of any further protection, while in her animalistic thoughts, humping each other's brains out.

Her source of distress was the timing.

Right now, not only Konoha, but all the elemental nations are facing a war no one was sure to win. The worst part of it all was that the woman knew the protocol. With her situation, her participation in the war is therefore cancelled. She knew that any day now, she would have to be transferred back to Konoha, so as to take care of the baby. Releasing a sigh, her eyes lost focus. Hana was a proud and strong kunoichi. The thought of being unable to help her village, and in her mind, more importantly, inability to assist in the defeat of her boyfriend's enemies was unacceptable. Hana was so engrossed in her thoughts that she wasn't aware of a new presence that should not have been where Hana thought she was. Tsunade had to clear her throat in order to wake the girl up.

"Tsunade-sama, what are you doing here? I thought you were to remain with the other kages." The blond kunoichi smirked at the question.

"Hana-chan, since you passed out yesterday, you do not recall what happened next. After Shizune found out of your situation, she asked for your immediate transfer to this facility we're now residing." Tsunade waited a little for the woman to settle in, before approaching near her bed. "I was deeply surprised when I heard that one of my medic-nins was pregnant. I was even more surprised when said medic-nin happens to be currently in a relationship with one of my hunter-nin." As the Hokage applied a brief diagnosis technique on Hana, the Inuzuka kunoichi took her time to study Tsunade's reactions to what she had just said. It was no mystery that Tsunade considered Naruto like family, perhaps like a son. She was startled when the Hokage started smiling while feeling the embryo's presence inside the Inuzuka, going through the process of pregnancy. In a way, seeing as the woman considered Naruto like her son, then Naruto's son or daughter would be her surrogate grandchild. Perhaps, now, the Hokage wouldn't be pissed off when her boyfriend called her baachan.

"Tsunade-sama, is everything alright?" Hana immediately relaxed upon seeing the Hokage nodding still with that heartwarming smile on her face.

"Everything is fine, Hana-chan, so far. Now, in normal situations, you would be immediately transferred back to Konoha. However, the village right now is in lock down with Anbu patrolling it night and day in order to protect it. With the situation we're in right now, I believe it's best if you remain here under the Kage's protection. This building's location won't be affected by the war, so you'll be safe." The Inuzuka nodded, satisfied that she wouldn't have to return to Konoha. However, Tsunade wasn't done. "Plus, we'll have to watch your baby closely. We have yet to ascertain if the Kyuubi had altered Naruto's DNA, and also if anything will happen to his offspring because of it. Right now, though, you have to relax, Hana-chan. I know that you inherited a lot of traits from your mother, but try not to think about the war right now." Tsunade remembered how Tsume was when Hana was conceived. After Hana nodded in silence, Tsunade turned her back and marched outside the room. She stopped, though, remembering one last and very important detail.

"Oh, I forgot. I will have Inoichi-san contact Jiraiya in order to tell Naruto the good news. I trust it isn't a problem?" Tsunade asked, before seeing Hana's shocked look.

'_Shit, I forgot all about having to tell him. I can't do this right now, Naruto-kun is already pissed at being confined. He'll want to leave and be with me and he can't do that.'_

"Tsunade-sama, if possible, I was hoping to keep it a secret from him, at least until this war is over." By the look on the Hokage's face, she was clearly disapproving this. "If he knows about it, he'll no doubt want to leave the place he is being protected right now. If that happens, Akatsuki will know and capture him for good. No matter how much I want him here right now with me, I can't in good conscience allow him to be captured." Hana was barely able to hold her tears as she had to explain the reason why she didn't want the father of her child to know. She couldn't bear the thought of Naruto being killed on his way to see her. It was best that he was protected at all costs. Tsunade kept the look of disapproval, but she started to ponder on Hana's reasons. Knowing Naruto, he would probably release the Kyuubi if someone attempted to stop him from coming.

She couldn't help but smile at that.

"Okay Hana-chan, I won't tell him for now. Simply relax and I'll personally see how you are from time to time."

Hana smiled at that and nodded, before lying down once more while trying to close her eyes. She wondered if Naruto would condone her for not telling him right away, but she knew it was the right thing to do right now. Any step in this war required cautious thinking and acting rashly would only cause more harm than good, especially in her boyfriend's case, since he's basically the entire reason this war exists in the first place, even if indirectly so.

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

Unaware of his new responsibilities, Naruto was surrounded by the golden energy as he saw wooden vines approach his position with tremendous fury and speed. Using his newly improved speed, Naruto dodged each of the vines that threatened him as he charged at Yamato, while performing hand seals, before igniting the fire inside his lungs. Upon opening his mouth, the blond emitted a gigantic fireball that charged the wood user. The ball of fire was even larger than the real one because Naruto was using more of Kyuubi's chakra. The heat managed to set the wood on fire, so Yamato had to release his technique. Naruto took advantage and increased his speed. As soon as he was about to engage Yamato in taijutsu, Jiraiya came in with his feet and landed a nasty kick on Naruto's face, that sent him skidding a few meters away from Yamato.

The force of the blow wasn't strong enough to deter Naruto's path, but Jiraiya's plan was only to take his attention away from Yamato for another attack.

_Youton (Lava Release: Lava Bullets Technique)_

Naruto was about to press on his speed when he saw what appeared to be condensed balls formed by some sort of red liquid charge straight at him. Using his extra limbs, while he was gathering his sword, Naruto molded some hand seals, before spitting mud on the ground right in front of him. The mud barrier soon lifted thus protecting him from Mei's strange technique. Not waiting for the wall to disperse, Naruto vanished using his speed and appeared behind the Mizukage. The woman sensed the shift in chakra and blocked the sword strike, before using one handed seals, much to Naruto and everyone's surprise, before gathering something in her mouth. Naruto wasn't that interested in waiting to see it, so he vanished once more, before throwing a couple of shuriken at the woman from another position. Mei quickly deflected them using a sword made of water, before charging the blond. Quickly doing hand seals, Naruto gathered air inside his lungs, before punching his chest.

_Fuuton Renkuudan no Jutsu (Wind Release: Drilling Air Projectile Technique)_

The raging air ball travelled towards the Mizukage in speeds no one ever thought possible. She knew it was impossible to dodge in time or even attempt a defensive jutsu. Naruto smirked at this, remembering his fight against the one tailed demon a long time ago and how the demon's technique nearly leveled the entire forest. While his was certainly less powerful, it wasn't less threatening. Before the attack could connect, though, Naruto was surprised to see a water dragon soaring behind him courtesy of Yamato. Jiraiya, meanwhile, was busy using a kekkai barrier in front of the Mizukage in order to protect her from Naruto's technique. He had to commend the boy, though. Regarding wind jutsu, Jiraiya didn't know of anyone besides old legends, that surpassed the boy. Immediately, the Nidaime Kazekage came to mind. Naruto smirked at the dragon behind him and used his newly acquired rasengan defense technique. It was a good time as any to test its effectiveness.

_Fuuton Rasenshuriken Heki (Wind Release: Spiral Shuriken Wall Technique)_

The gigantic rasenshuriken was positioned in front of Naruto just as the water dragon opened its mouth to finish the job. The wind around the rasengan managed to hold its own against the mighty water technique. In the end, the wind managed to slice the water particles needed to maintain the dragon stable, thus ending Yamato's technique. It was basically the same concept applied to the second stage needed to master wind manipulation, cutting a waterfall in half. Taking his sword, Naruto charged at Yamato who took his own sword and parried Naruto's strike. The jounin was taken aback by the strength of Naruto's attack and couldn't block it for long. Yamato wasn't much interested in kenjutsu, but as an Anbu, he was required to be at least proficient with it. Naruto even focused wind chakra through his sword and broke Yamato's, before using his limbs and punch Yamato from the back. Yamato saw it and evaded, before engaging in taijutsu against the blond. He had no hope of winning, because of the hunter-nin's extra limbs, but his plan was slightly different.

As soon as the golden limb landed a hit on Yamato's stomach, the ex-Anbu was transformed into mud and started melting, trapping Naruto in place. Seeing that Yamato managed to hold the boy in place, he started hand seals sequence, before his entire right arm was transformed into wood. Yamato's eyes managed to spot that Jiraiya was using this opportunity in order to attack Naruto as soon, or if, he managed to dodge Yamato's technique.

_Mokuton Daijurin no Jutsu (Wood Release Great Forest Technique)_

The beam of spiky wood suddenly multiplied by ten times as they charged the still immobilized Naruto. Suddenly four limbs appeared from Naruto's side and slammed the ground with enough force that not only freed Naruto from the mud, but also catapulted the hunter-nin up in the air. His eyes briefly caught Jiraiya ready to attack him and once more used his extra limbs to block the incoming taijutsu attack. Jiraiya backed away, but Naruto could see a smirk on the pervert's face. Managing to not only trace a sannin's movements, but also respond to it in time to block it required equal or perhaps higher agility. Suddenly, a person who was feeling left out, began some hand seals, before gathering something inside her mouth.

_Youton Youkai no Jutsu (Lava Release: Melting Specte__r__ Technique)_

Out of the blue, the Mizukage emitted a huge stream of lava, catching Naruto off guard completely. He was focusing on Jiraiya and Yamato who were closer to him. That was just fine with the Mizukage because she was used to fight using long-range techniques. The attack hit Naruto and it generated smoke around his position. Mei suddenly realized that perhaps she took this too far. The damn jinchuuriki was really hard to catch off guard, she reasoned. Perhaps she could have chosen an attack that wasn't meant to melt humans until only bones remained. When the smoke subsided, the woman was surprised that the jinchuuriki was no longer where he first stood. The golden specter of light was the only thing she saw before she felt cold steel inches from her jugular. She froze immediately upon feeling the cold steel close to her throat. She almost felt the metal of the blade slowly cutting her neck. She was surprised to see that Naruto wasn't backing down from his threat. She knew the boy to be a hunter-nin and clearly must have done this many times before for much less than what she had done.

"I thought that neither of us was able to use assassination techniques, Mizukage-sama. Perhaps, you feel like that rule would not apply anymore. I'd be more than happy to use one of my own."

One aspect of using the fox's chakra was that Naruto could produce some major killing intent to his enemies, similar to what the demon used upon killing its prey. Mei had immediately narrowed her eyes at the threat, but found that she couldn't do anything about it. Moving a finger would be enough for Naruto to finish the job. She knew that one of her hunter-nin Ao would act the same way towards a threat. The woman, strangely so, was actually being turned on by this sense of submission, demonstrating a sadistic personality. She frowned when Naruto took his sword away and deactivated his golden energy, before walking towards Jiraiya and Yamato. The hunter-nin may be quite young to her, but upon looking at his back, she couldn't help but realize a great number of qualities that far exceeded matters of age alone. Perhaps being tasked with his protection was not a bad thing after all.

Naruto, for his turn and completely unaware of the Mizukage's thoughts, marched towards Jiraiya and Yamato with one thought in mind.

"I'm getting tired of this place. I can't take this anymore being protected while I could be fighting out there." Jiraiya was afraid of having to subdue Naruto, now that he managed to use one hundred percent of the fox's chakra.

"You being here isn't just for you Naruto, but for the entire world. If they manage to extract the beast from you, it's all over. You know this and yet you keep thinking about going." Jiraiya explained, hoping beyond hope that the boy would listen to reason and not use force to escape.

"Right now, the only one who could go against a tailed beast is me. If they decide to use the power of the eight collected bijuus, there isn't anyone aside from the Kyuubi who could go against them. I do remember the Sandaime Hokage telling me once that one attack from the Kyuubi was enough to wipe almost half of the village. No shinobi out there can hope to stop a bijuu using chakra alone. About me getting captured, if we teamed up against that damn Madara and Pein, they wouldn't be able to beat us." Yamato handed the mantle of persuading Naruto against this to Jiraiya, so he just stood and listened, while at the same time, preparing his technique in case Naruto decided to release the fox and escape. Jiraiya, for his part, was just looking intently at his godson's eyes, while pondering on what Naruto was saying. If the enemy were to use the power of the collected bijuu, Jiraiya couldn't help but agree that few people out there would be able to stop it and that were the Kages.

"Naruto, go to your room and rest for the moment. I'll contact the Kages about this new possible development and ask for their decision. It's their choice whether or not we march from here not mine or even the Mizukage alone." Naruto looked at the man for a while, as in debating with himself if he should have left this place himself. He knew that Yamato was already molding an impressive amount of chakra, no doubt, to use the Shodai's technique to subdue the fox's chakra. He nodded at the pervert and marched to his room, passing by the Mizukage. While this was going on, Jiraiya and Yamato started to talk.

"You think he'll resort to force if the Kages say no?" Yamato asked, getting a smirk in return from the pervert.

"No doubt in my mind that he will. He may behave more like his father nowadays, more collected and matured, but he still has his mother's fighting spirit. Today showed that he can handle himself against almost anything out there Yamato. Even if we didn't use our most powerful techniques, neither of us were holding back on him. He managed to follow my speed and avoid all attacks from both you and the Mizukage. If he were to use his Rasengan based techniques, then I would fear for our lives." Yamato, despite the situation, smiled at the perverted sannin. The man was proud of the boy for how much he accomplished in so little time.

"Still, the enemy is quite powerful. Not only Madara, but the other one with the Rinnegan, not to mention the collected power of the bijuus; Naruto cannot face all of them alone." Yamato explained as he saw the Mizukage approaching.

"Then the Kages shall fight by his side. The alliance has its elite as well, Yamato-san. Aside from the Kages, Jiraiya here is a sannin and there is Hatake Kakashi and Maito Gai from the Leaf; Kitsuchi from Rock; Ao from Mist and Darui from Cloud, not to mention Naruto himself." The pervert had to smirk at that.

"Are you saying that you'll vouch for the brat when we speak to the Kages?" Mei smiled and nodded at the sannin. Jiraiya just presumed the brat has grown on her as well like he does with the others.

Little did he know that Mei's thoughts were completely different.

"Ok then, I'll start the communication, but it will take a while, so I'll call you when I'm done Mizukage-sama." The woman nodded and left towards her own room.

* * *

**Author Note**

And it's the end for now.

Naruto creates some kick ass techniques and becomes a father, even if he's still unaware because of Hana's decision.

Well, seeing how Naruto progressed, there is a chance he'll get the go ahead from the Kages. The truth, though, is that he could not fight the enemy without assistance. And also what will happen with Mei? She is having some perverted thoughts about Naruto right now, but will she act upon them?

I want to hear your thoughts as the story reaches its end.

Also, just to remind you all, that I placed three challenges on my profile page. Just to know if the third challenge isn't taken, I'll take it and write a new story.

See ya.


	26. One man army

**Author Note**

Hi there gang and welcome to another chapter of my hunter-nin story.

This time, I won't prolong this author note by telling the events of last chapter, so I'll just go straight to answering the reviews from last chapter.

**Kmaster** – In fact, I didn't. Although it wasn't a concern of mine, I can say that it is actually irrelevant. In canon, the only time he used said ability was to see who of the allied shinobi that attacked him and Bee were actually white zetsu in disguise. Seeing as in this story, there is no Kabuto and Edo Tensei, Also, Kisame was killed by Naruto and Jiraiya and the Bee was captured, so once more Naruto's skill, even if in fact existed, would not be useful in this story. Although coming to think about it, Kabuto's contribution was merely resurrect the most powerful shinobi in history. It was the white Zetsu who transformed into the allied shinobi alliance and attacked them, so thank you for the heads up. I'll remember to implement the idea in this chapter.

**Kihakukage – **One thing I can say about the ending I'm planning is that it will be quite shocking. I know that while the events will happen, people will be thinking of a good amount of curse words at me for what I've done, well, what I'm planning to do. However, I can assure you that by the end of the last chapter, the readers will certainly feel at ease. You'll certainly realize this after reading my response to your review. I haven't asked your question, but it was intended.

**Wyrtha** – Don't you worry about him using rasengan based techniques only. He will be using his elemental techniques as well, with extra kick thanks to the fox's power.

**Jack-o'-LaNtErN 91 – **He won't know of Hana's pregnancy until the war is over.

**Troll – **Hell no! Multiple wives it's just unrealistic and even if some pointed the possibility of such by using clan resurrection act or something like that, I am still skeptical about its existence.

**Rescue 007** – ….I see.

**NightCrawler** – Man, comparing Sasuke's crime to Misao's is just not fair. Sure, they both left their village. However, while Misao left and went on her merry way towards settling down somewhere else, Sasuke left and just so happened to join forces with Konoha's S-ranked criminal Orochimaru, who by the way, just so wished to burn the Leaf to the ground. Second, Naruto swore his oath to follow the bingo book. Misao wasn't a threat as she wanted nothing to do with the village. Uchiha Sasuke wasn't even listed in the bingo book, because of Tsunade's leniency. It goes without saying that Sasuke's crimes were by far worse than Misao's. Finally, what you said about me transferring personal aggression into the story, it's just not true as I'm just following the events of Sasuke's drive towards vengeance. If you read my other stories (Meshii and Accursed Brothers), you'd see that I can also view different aspects in Sasuke's upbringing, such as needing a worthy rival to test his skills against and continuously grow. In fact, the only character I hate in canon is Sakura. No offense to those who like her, but it just irritate me when I see her.

**NightCrawler (review of chapter 22) – **About this review, I believe you forgot to complete the sentence. "Why gather 80000 shinobi from 5 nations to battle just 4 S-rank ninja". You forgot to mention 100000 zetsu and 8 bijuu.

**Stealthshrimp** – Naruto and Tsume? Well, the pairing has crossed my mind once or twice, but i just don't see much in her. I just don't see how someone being attracted by her. It's not just the age difference I seek in a matured relationship, but the person's look as well. For instance, Tsunade is much older than Tsume, but I can see myself write more about her with the blond then Tsume.

Well, let's proceed, then.

* * *

**Chapter 26 – One man army**

**Beta: Kyuubi123**

* * *

In the alliance's main center of operation, even if it was far away from the action, it was quite frenzied.

The information gathering and communication center was stationed there. Sensory and shinobi with high mental abilities were all stationed inside the building as they were required to relay information to the Kages and the commands at the field. Two of Konoha's clan heads were running most of the show, though, those being Yamanaka Inoichi, clan head of the Yamanaka Clan and rumored to be capable in mind battle in all the elemental nations. Nara Shikaku, the clan head of the Nara Clan, was the alliance's head tactician along with the Raikage and Tsushikage. These two provided this sort of communication system with the entire allied forces in the field. Controlling a force of eighty thousand shinobi against a battalion of one hundred thousand strange white creatures was considered an impossible task, but not to a brilliant man such as Shikaku, whose brilliance is only matched by his own amount of laziness.

Despite it all, he was able, to so far, come up with a suitable plan for the alliance.

Yamanaka Inoichi was busy overseeing the communication unit while suddenly a message came from a place he never considered receiving until the very end of the war. It came from the place where the Akatsuki's target was being held, where Uzumaki Naruto was kept hidden from the organization that targeted nothing more than controlling the nine bijuu's chakra and using it against the world. Hearing so much intel at the same time was taxing, so Inoichi couldn't remember everything prior to the war. However, he remembered that this specific communication wasn't supposed to come until the end of everything…that was supposing that the alliance was victorious.

"Inoichi-san…." The noise was familiar to the mind walker.

"I can hear you Jiraiya-sama, what is it that you need from me?" From the hiding place, Jiraiya couldn't help but marvel at this. They were in the middle of nowhere and yet he could hear Inoichi as if he was right there next to him.

"There has been a new development here. Could you please pass the word to the Kage, I wish to speak to them about something important regarding the last jinchuuriki." This modern tech was damn useful, but in the end, all worked thanks to the clan head's mind ability. It was all kept up and running because of his techniques. Jiraiya's request, though, would be next to impossible, considering that he needed to be connected to the machine that was supporting the communication squad. He would need to do this using another perspective entirely. Focusing more chakra, Inoichi reached his teammate Shikaku. He would need to be the messenger bird between Jiraiya and the Kage.

* * *

**===with Naruto===**

Alone in his room, Naruto was sitting on top of his bed with his eyes closed, meditating.

He was currently in his mind talking with the fox. Soon after he showed the results of his training to Jiraiya and the others, he stomped to his room and slammed the door before landing roughly on his bed, while wondering what the hell was happening out there. It didn't take long before the fox called for him inside his mindscape for one last thing he needed to address. One thing that Naruto first found about the creature's voice was that despite its majestic voice, it somewhat sounded worried. Perhaps, Naruto was so accustomed to talking to the fox that he could recognize different tones in the Kyuubi's voice. He knew when the beast wanted nothing more than to mess with him; he knew when the beast was angry and wanting to ripe his body apart; and he even knew when the fox was irritated and wanted nothing more than to be left alone. This time he could hear the worried tone of voice, seeing as the fox had yet to make a snide comment.

"Okay Kyuubi, what is that you called me here for?" Instead of being in the cage, Kyuubi was outside of it, merely seating like a tired dog wanting to cross the road. Its nine exuberant tails were casually playing with each other and it made the hunter-nin wonder if Kyuubi enjoyed playing with its tails.

"**Seeing as you fully intend to go out there and face pretty much everyone, it's prudent for me to tell you of two techniques that will certainly give you an edge once in the field. First of all, I'd like it for you to call me by my real name instead of the one your pathetic kind bestowed upon me" **As expected, Naruto's eyebrow rose highly up his forehead, but the fox chose not to wait for a stupid question such as 'huh?' or what are you talking about?' Instead, he took the initiative and explained. **"It's time for one of those boring history lessons, brat, so you'd do well to seat.** **As I believe you know, we bijuu were created by the man your kind calls Rikudou Sennin. Listen attentively, because I will not explain it to you twice.**" Naruto did just that and listened to everything, finally digesting the truth behind the legend that is the Rikudou Sennin. How he always treated the bijuu as nothing more than his companions, never once believing them as demons or hateful creatures of destruction. Naruto noticed how the fox mentioned his previous hosts' declaration of what they believed about the fox's power, including, much to Naruto's surprise, the Shodaime Hokage and Uchiha Madara. He was later surprised when he heard the name given to the fox by the Rikudou Sennin.

"Kurama is your name, then. I kind of always wondered why you were mentioned by the number of tails but never sought for answers. Okay, Kurama, what are the techniques you wish to tell me about it?" The fox showed all of its teeth as he knew that his host enjoyed a nice ninjutsu.

"**The first is one you recognize as being used by your damn father, the Hiraishin."** As expected, Naruto was shocked, but Kurama continued. **"That pathetic pierce of trash left both you and me with the specifics of the technique and told that your perverted sensei had the special kunai needed for it. Personally, though, your speed almost matched that of your father by using the power you egoistically took from me."** Give it to the damn fox for messing with his mind once more. The damn fox was the one who simply let him take it in the first place. Apparently, though, the fox showed a smile of amusement at Naruto's thoughts. "**You're indeed quite amusing to mess with, Naruto." **Great, because of the link we now share, Kurama can read my mind.** "Yes, I can. Now, don't interrupt me. That second technique I wish for you to learn is one all bijuu possess and quite possibly you will have to face it out there. It's called the bijuudama." **Immediately, images of the technique appeared to Naruto as well as the necessary information of the technique inside his mind. "**Its power it's measured by the amount of tails a bijuu possesses. For instance, if you were to compare mine with that one tailed Shukaku, I would obliterate him." **A small laugh from the fox was evidence that perhaps a sort of rivalry existed between bijuu, which was kind of weird, considering that well it was a human emotion.

"**Do not compare me with your kind, human." **Despite having the fox's trust, antagonizing Kurama just wasn't smart, so he merely apologized with a nod.

"So how can I learn the bijuudama?" Once more the fox smirked.

"**The knowledge is being transferred to your mind as is the Hiraishin. When you open your eyes, you'll know how to. Now that I've explained everything, I'm getting tired of talking to you brat." **

Naruto looked with slight amusement as the fox lied on the ground and used its tails as some sort of cushion. Normally, he would begin a verbal contest against Kurama, but he merely smiled and left the room. He wasn't aware that the fox had one of its eyes open while looking at his back with a relaxed smile on its face. Letting out a comfort snort, Kurama closed his eyes once more, now that it found a host that didn't think of the fox as either a power of destruction or something that needed to be controlled for the sake of humanity. This alone meant more for Kurama than one million words trying to convince someone. The only uncertainty that remained is whether or not its host would be able to rid the world of Uchiha Madara.

As soon as he opened his eyes, Naruto heard a knock on the door.

Wondering who it could be at this point, he opened the door to see the Mizukage standing there placing one of her hands on her hip while bending her body both forward and to the left.

"Can I help you Mizukage-sama?" The woman was a kage after all.

"Well, you certainly can. You left in a hurry after training and I didn't get a chance to talk to you about something that picked my interest." Naruto wondered what the woman could possibly wish to talk about with him of all people.

"I was a bit irritated at being imprisoned here, but never mind. What was it that you wish to speak to me about?" Something about this situation seemed familiar with Naruto as he was accustomed to walking in bars and brothels during his trips. Thus, he had a bit of experience in telling when the female sex is coming on to him. He had only experienced it once and it was with one of his hunter kunoichi comrades. The way the woman was talking and her pose was telling Naruto something.

"Well, it's not something I wish others to hear, so can we talk inside." It Mei wasn't a kage, then Naruto wouldn't suspect a thing. Now why would a person of her position approach a shinobi from another village without any form of back up?

Stoically, Naruto nodded and opened the door for the woman to enter, before closing it. As he saw the woman walking inside and looking around a bit, he could see her swinging her body in a provocative manner. Taking a bit of time to turn and address him was also another bit of evidence, seeing as she was hoping he was caught staring at her behind. Being a woman, a veteran kunoichi, Terumi Mei probably was quite experienced in seducing assignments. No doubt, the woman knew what she was doing. The hunter-nin could already see her approaching her target with a hidden kunai in hand and delivering the swift kill before the aroused opponent is aware of what is happening. However, Naruto had one advantage as compared to the amount of pheromones Kyuubi, no Kurama, released, Mei's was nothing. Not to mention the fact that Naruto's relationship with Hana was way too solid for him to even think about betraying her.

After a while, Mei simply stopped looking around and immediately became suspicious that her trick just wasn't working with him. She turned and saw that he was just waiting there with his arms crossed, waiting for her to speak.

"I'm impressed. I've managed to seduce quite a lot of high level shinobi, but you seem to control yourself admirably well." Naruto smirked at the openness in her statement.

"I'm impressed as well. As familiar as I am with assassinations, your technique is quite effective. I could practically see my neck being sliced by a hidden kunai. I do wonder why you attempted to seduce me at a time like this. Certainly it isn't to kill me?" _Well, come to think about it._ "Although, considering your lava attacks at me earlier, I could be wrong by that statement." Mei smirked, though, hiding her sad façade. She was a kage and thus experience at the world of not showing her true intentions. Straight forward conversation just wasn't her forte. Despite that now being impossible since he caught her, she was now visualizing her past missions and how long it took for the enemy to realize what was going on, before being assassinated. Hell, she even managed to kill one of the members of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist that was loyal to the last Mizukage with her seduction technique.

"Before I give you the reason, I feel compelled to ask how you managed to overrule my control." Naruto shrugged not seeing any reason to lie to her.

"Like I said, I am familiar with swift assassinations. As far as your technique, let's just say I have means to tell when some exterior force is trying to invade my senses. Also, I know it sounds weird considering my line of work, but I have a very solid relationship with a kunoichi from Konoha and I just don't picture myself throwing what I have away." Mei smiled at this. He took a long time before explaining the actual reason why her technique didn't work. Her technique only works on either single men or men who despite having a woman in their lives, just didn't care about betrayal. Of course, the level of control over one's will must be strong to resist, but nevertheless is considered an effective defense. A sad smile suddenly appeared on her face.

"Whoever she is, she is very lucky to have someone like you, Naruto. I'm sorry for doing this. I'll take my leave." Naruto was surprised upon feeling the emotion behind those words as he saw Mei leaving his room.

"For what is worth, Mei-san…" The Mizukage turned, surprised at how he addressed her, and saw him smiling at her. "If I didn't have someone in my life, I wouldn't think twice accepting your invitation." The woman nodded in appreciation.

"I trust that what happened here will remain a secret between the both of us, no one needs to know about it." Naruto nodded, before she bid him good night.

After getting onto his bed, Naruto closed his eyes once more in order to assimilate the info regarding the techniques. When Hana appeared in his mind, he couldn't help but smile at the image of his girlfriend playing with her dogs.

* * *

**===at the Alliance's Command Center===**

As Senju Tsunade walked by the empty hallways of the rather spacious floor, her thoughts drifted back to the two hour meeting her and the other kage held with Jiraiya over a single topic of discussion.

According to the pervert, Naruto had not only gained full access to the fox's chakra, but he managed to reach a speed that perhaps equaled the deceased Yondaime Hokage. Of course, the validity of said statement was considered laughable by the senior members of the meeting. Both the Tsushikage and the Raikage had known the Yondaime Hokage and considered his speed to be faster than lightning itself. The Raikage had even admitted that his speed, though close, was nothing compared to Namikaze Minato's Hiraishin. Their opinion was swayed to the other side, though, when Jiraiya reported that Naruto managed to keep on his toes against the Mizukage, Jiraiya himself and one elite jounin of Konoha, using his super speed. Their combined reputation spoke words and neither the Lightning nor Earth Shadow could dispute their claims. After that, Jiraiya went on and brought forward Naruto's release from his hideout to join the alliance forces.

Tsunade was, of course, the first one to protest. However, her claim that he needed protection had little merit after what was revealed by Jiraiya. She wanted nothing more than to express the real reasons not to allow him to go, but she couldn't. No one was to know the truth about the boy being a father in nine months. Said secret was shared only by the Hokage, Hana and Shizune, since the latter was the one who found out and brought Hana to the command center. Tsunade stopped walking and faced Inuzuka Hana's door before opening slightly. She could see the light was out and that the pregnant woman was currently sleeping. Walking without making a sound, Tsunade did a quick diagnostics technique and found that everything was fine so far. She could see a considerable ball of chakra being gathered inside her reproductive organs and smirked. No doubt it was Naruto's child as it was way larger than it should be for a normal child.

Tsunade frowned, though, considering that Hana's pregnancy will be much more painful. Hana was a strong kunoichi, though, and had extensive knowledge in using chakra to reduce the pain.

Turning towards the door, Tsunade was surprised when she heard slight moans coming from the sleeping woman.

"No…Naruto-kun…don't go, you'll be killed!" Immediately Tsunade felt a gigantic pain in her chest. It was a dream sure, since she couldn't have known what was decided. All she could do at the moment was to hope that Naruto would return safely. As she closed the door to the infirmary, Tsunade was surprised to see both the Raikage and the Tsushikage standing outside apparently waiting for her. She doubted that anything else happened since thirty minutes ago, so she was at a loss of what these two wanted from her.

"What's the matter?" It was the Raikage who stepped forward and explained.

"The time for us not to intervene has passed, Hokage-dono. If the jinchuuriki is fighting out there, then we must make sure that the enemy isn't just waiting for him to show up. I'm damn well sure that as soon as he steps close to the battle, all the enemy's focus will be on him. Tsushikage agrees with me. The Kyuubi brat will be freed from the island and head straight to the battle if what we heard from Jiraiya is true. Therefore, we will be following him. The minute Madara and the Rinnegan user shows up, we'll cover him. We don't know how Madara plans on using the captured bijuu; perhaps he will use it against the last jinchuuriki as well, since the Kyuubi is the strongest of them."

Tsunade looked at the senior shinobi in front of her for a while, before crackling her finger a bit.

"So what do you think, Tsunade-hime?" Onooki asked. He could see the woman was carving for a battle.

"I say, let's go for it. Shikaku-san has proven quite capable as our tactician, so he can handle things here. Do any of you know the exact position that Naruto will appear?" Tsunade only needed to tell someone to take care of Hana while she was gone. Now that she would be there with the brat, she would do everything in her power to stop Akatsuki from getting their hands on Naruto.

* * *

**===at the hideout===**

Naruto was asleep when he heard someone knocking on his door. The amount of info regarding both the hiraishin and the bijuudama was quite extensive, hence why Naruto was suffering from a nasty headache at the moment. It was no surprise that when Naruto opened the door, Jiraiya saw the sword in Naruto's hand. He could also see the boy's hand trembling, probably desiring nothing more than to slice the one who woke him up. Certainly, his reddish pupils were quite an indication on how mad the boy was at being awakened.

"Yes…" Jiraiya had to smile at how grumpy the boy sounded right now. Nevertheless, he had good news.

"Good news gaki…the kage approved of you going to the warzone. We'll leave this place first thing tomorrow." The news was indeed good seeing as Naruto's eyes returned to his normal blue ones.

"Ok then, thank you. I'll be ready." Naruto said, before closing the door not allowing Jiraiya to see the boy smiling inside his room. He was already envisioning the enemy's army getting slaughtered by his sword.

* * *

**===the next day===**

When the sun appeared in the horizon, everyone in the hideout was already awakened. However, of all of them, Naruto undoubtedly was the first one up and ready to go. He admitted to almost losing his mind if he stayed one more minute hidden from the organization. Naruto was a born fighter. No matter what happened in his life, he will always prefer joining in the front lines than being protected; even if he was the target. He knew that nothing could go wrong; he knew that he couldn't risk capture, but no way in hell would he just allow himself to sit and wait while the enemy is out there using the power of the bijuu against the members of his village, amongst others. Naruto saw the boat already waiting for them to leave.

Once everyone joined aboard the boat, it left the strange island towards the place of the battle.

From here on out, it would take approximately four hours for them to arrive. Once they do, the jounin would scatter and join the platoons. Jiraiya and the Mizukage would be the ones following Naruto just in case. The hunter-nin wasn't made aware of the Kage's decision to be by his side, but it was clear to everyone that the moment the last jinchuurki arrives, they will converge most of their efforts in capturing him. Standing alone, Naruto had his eyes unfocused as he was sharpening his blade. Everyone could see that his body was there but his mind was already battling against the enemy. A few of the jounin from other villages had heard of the jinchuuriki's prowess after it was revealed to them that the Konoha hunter-nin that was cleaning the bingo book was in fact the jinchuuriki. Those who knew them and also knew whom he was related to, couldn't help but spot the similarities. Jiraiya was perhaps the only one who could attest that as he saw an image of Minato in Hokage robes posing just like Naruto was right now.

He took a few steps before being side by side with the hunter-nin.

"Once we arrive, all hell will break loose, brat. You sure you're ready for this?" Jiraiya's line of sight never wandered away from the horizon and neither did Naruto's. After sharpening his blade, Naruto placed his hunter-nin mask back on.

"We'll only know when we arrive there, won't we?" Naruto said, before placing his sword back inside the scabbard strapped on his back. "One thing I do know…" Jiraiya turned to meet the hunter-nin's mask as Naruto finished talking. "is that I belong on the front lines." Jiraiya couldn't help but smile at this. Normally hunter-nin were subtle, often resorting to dirty tactics to ensure a swift kill. Naruto was a different type of hunter-nin, wanting nothing more than a full scale battle against his enemies. As far as effectiveness is involved, Naruto managed to wipe out more criminals than all of the past hunter-nin combined, except for that mad man Uzuki Gaeshi. Coming to think about it, Jiraiya could see his methods in Naruto. Despite how sadistic he was, Gaeshi loved the village and would do anything in his power to rid the village of missing-nin. Perhaps, Naruto's internship under his tutelage wasn't so bad after all.

* * *

**===at the warzone===**

Four hours later, the ship had arrived at its destination.

The jounin had already scattered in different directions, leaving Naruto with Jiraiya and the Mizukage alone close to the ship's location. Immediately, the three began to run with Naruto in front. Suddenly, they could see a great amount of shinobi coming their way. Jiraiya and Mei were already slowing down to talk to the battalion when Naruto activated the golden cloak as per Kurama's suggestion. Immediately, after doing so, he could feel the real nature of the men in front of them and landed a strong kick in one kumo-nin, shocking both Mei and Jiraiya, before the one attacked was transformed into a white zetsu. Immediately, Naruto went on the offensive, not even looking behind to see if Jiraiya or the Mizukage was following him.

Summoning a kage bunshin, the real one used all ten fingers and formed mini rasenshuriken at the battalion of white zetsu, while the clone was busy doing hand seals.

_Fuuton Suidou no Tatsumaki (Wind Release Tornado Tunnel Technique)_

The clone was immediately enveloped by a ferocious wind, before charging the zetsu that couldn't do anything but receive the full extent of the technique. The rest of the platoon, composed of five zetsu, tried to attack Naruto by merging together. However, as soon as the merging was complete, they were face to face with a fireball easily twice their joined size. The zetsu were turned into ash immediately while the real Naruto saw the results of his training in front of him. He had a full smirk on his face, while both Jiraiya and the Mizukage couldn't help but gawk at how fast the hunter-nin managed to take care of a fifty-man battalion with only three ninjutsu techniques. Jiraiya quickly lost his surprise and smiled eagerly. He wasn't aware of the enemy impersonating the members of the alliance.

"Naruto, we have to assist the platoons. You were the one who could see through their disguise, so your clones will be able to do that as well." Naruto nodded and summoned another twenty clones, before sending him in random directions.

"Wouldn't it be wise to save his chakra, Jiraiya? Neither Pein nor Madara has appeared so far." The pervert nodded, though, he couldn't do much.

"Right now the alliance is at a loss out there, fighting against each other. The enemy can impersonate their appearance as well as their chakra, so neither of us could feel any difference. This way, the enemy's army will lose their disadvantage." Mei was worried for a second there, but she nodded at the pervert's assessment. Right now, the only one who could detect the enemies from the allies was Naruto. In the end, though, the blond had a massive bundle of energy just waiting to be called upon.

"So we'll just have to stick close to him, though I do wonder how much chakra he has now that the Kyuubi is fully merged with its host." Jiraiya nodded while following the golden Naruto as he dealt with the zetsu.

Far away from their position, up in the mountain region, both Madara and Pein used their dojutsu to see Naruto dealing with the zetsu.

"It seems the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki is once more showing how much of a thorn he is to my plans. I feel that our time has come, Nagato." The rinnegan user nodded, before everyone vanished from their position, including the seven shadows behind them. Something about the boy showing up just didn't sound right to the organization leader. The last remaining jinchuuriki was hidden thus far from the Akatsuki by the five kages.

* * *

**===throughout the battlefields===**

The allied forces had gathered the amount of five different battalions separated in key positions amongst the battle zone, so that each battalion could better cover the other in case of need. The author of said strategy was none other than Nara Shikaku and it was considered brilliant by both the Raikage and the Tsushikage. The Raikage even commented that he now understood why Konoha was such a fearsome opponent back in the previous wars. Despite the brilliance strategically wise, the allied forces were caught with their guard down as they were unaware of the zetsu's ability to fully transform its body into one of the allies' shinobi or kunoichi. The allied forces had a great amount of sensors and byakugan users, but even they could not sense any difference between the enemy and the allies. Because of this, many had been killed believing that the one that stood next to him was an ally.

Because of this, the battalion leaders began to realize the mess created by confusion amongst their peers.

Suddenly, in all of the fight zones, a bright golden beam appeared, stopping both enemies and allies from fighting. The bright golden light flickered in the battlefield, dealing swiftly and efficiently with the enemies, including the ones disguised. It all happened so fast that only a few more experienced jounin managed to catch a mere glimpse of what was happening in front of them. Shinobi from Iwagakure began to flinch at the memory and shinobi from Konoha were hit with a feeling of nostalgia, since they remembered the last person who managed to strike at such god like speeds. Within minutes, each Naruto clone managed to clean the battalion of white zetsu, including the ones that were transformed. The zetsu were powerless to stop the Naruto clones from using his sword in swift efficiency, cutting their heads off. In one of the battlefields, Hatake Kakashi was busy dealing with a few Hyuuga when the same bright golden light appeared and dealt with all of them. His lone sharingan eye was widened in shock as he greatly remembered the technique in front of him.

'…_Hiraishin.'_

Aside from Kakashi, though and a couple shinobi from Kumogakure and Iwagakure, neither one understood what was going on or the stranger's identity. With his help, though, the enemy's army was reduced considerably, allowing the allied forces to deal with the rest. Before the clones' intervention, each battalion had a disadvantage of at least two enemies to one shinobi. Now though, the situation was four shinobi to one enemy. The allied forces were victorious in this part of war. However, the real battle hadn't even begun as the last members of Akatsuki had yet to show. The battalion leaders immediately ordered his battalion to count the wounded and help them back to the infirmary. Kakashi was busy overseeing his platoon together with a couple Konoha jounin and chunnin. Maito Gai was by his side with a serious expression on his face while he saw the lost look in his old rival.

"It was him, wasn't it, Kakashi?" Kakashi nodded at his rival and long time friend. The only one who could ever hope to perform Namikaze Minato's technique was the man's offspring.

"It was. I wasn't aware that he managed such a feat and I'm quite sure the Hokage would have told me about it." Despite it all, Kakashi did smile at the fact that his sensei's legacy is now being used by the man's son. Naruto's ability managed to shift the tides of this war and Kakashi couldn't be more proud of his former student for such an achievement. Kakashi saw a few of Naruto's classmates attending to the wounded and wondered if they knew just who it was that saved them all today. The elite jounin wasn't alien to the fact that Naruto's efforts were long forgotten by the population, after his decision to join the elite division of hunter-nin.

"No matter what happens, I'll make sure to tell everyone how it was Naruto-kun's youthfulness that saved us all." Kakashi looked at his friend who was showing his usual Gai pose and smiled.

"I never thought I would say this, but I will too, Gai." Some may never know the real truth of what happened, but Kakashi would be damned if he allowed others to diminish Naruto's achievements.

They were about to move away when they recognized the Kazekage's sand swirling around them. Gai and Kakashi understood the message instantly and vanished to meet up with Gaara. Darui, an elite jounin from Kumo and Kizuki from Iwagakure, were also summoned to meet up with the Kazekage for an unknown reason.

Those who knew the identity of the golden light, namely Shino and the members of the Inuzuka Clan, smiled at the notion. Tsume and Kiba were battling together and both knew it was Naruto who saved them all. Tsume recognized the technique, but the Naruto clone stopped for a while and greeted the two before vanishing once more. Their new family member was one hell of a guy and quite probably, Kiba and Tsume would be able to call Naruto his/her brother/son. Aburame Shino and Nara Shikamaru also knew and nodded in appreciation for the clone's assistance. Shikamaru was together with Chouji and Ino and watched they talk between each other, wondering who the golden light was. Shikamaru smirked at Ino's question to Chouji. He wouldn't waste time saying Naruto's name to her, because it would be quite troublesome to satisfy the troublesome woman's curiosity. Shikamaru knew just how much Naruto was against being hidden and he just showed all of them why.

* * *

**===with the original Naruto===**

Having stopped because of the amount of information, Naruto couldn't help but smile at his clones' achievements. He turned to Jiraiya and Mei.

"The enemy army was dealt with. However, the real enemy wasn't amongst them." Jiraiya and Mei nodded. Although it was quite an achievement, now was not the time to celebrate. Madara and Pein are powerful opponents by themselves, not to mention the fact that they have the power of the bijuu at their disposal. Deactivating the Kyuubi's energy to save chakra, Naruto turned to his sensei and the Mizukage for the next course of action when a voice behind him appeared.

"So, the time came for us to capture you finally, Kyuubi." A sudden swirl appeared in front of them, before Madara and Pein appeared out of it.

Mei and Jiraiya were shocked to see the jinchuurikis behind them. It was impossible for them to fight against all of them. Seeing their eyes, one sharingan and one rinnegan, made everyone tense.

Jiraiya smirked in relief, though, when he sensed nine powerful presences behind them. The five kages, Kakashi, Gai, Kizuki and Darui were there as well, backing Naruto up for the battle ahead.

Tsunade was the one who spoke.

"We won't let you capture Naruto, Madara." The founder of the Uchiha Clan was silent as he contemplated the opposition.

They were just waiting for him to show. It didn't matter though.

"We shall see who emerges victorious, Tsunade-hime." Naruto activated his golden cloak once more in preparation for perhaps the greatest battle of his career. Everyone soon followed with Tsunade releasing the seal on her forehead, A activating this lightning armor, Kakashi activating his mangenkyou sharingan, Gai preparing the gates. All sides of the battle were composed of high level shinobi. Therefore, there was no clear advantage for either of them. There was one vital difference, though and Naruto would capitalize like hell.

While they couldn't afford to kill him, he didn't have said restraint.

* * *

**Author Note**

Ok that's it for this chapter. I'll stop right here.

This chapter served more to cover the results of Naruto's training and as a bridge for the final battle of the story.

For those who believed that Mei would make her move on Naruto, you got it right. However, our hero managed to dismiss her without hurting the woman's feelings. With Naruto's new abilities, he managed to destroy the zetsu army using his father's Hiraishin. Now it is time for the final battle as he, Jiraiya and the Kage fights against Madara, Pein and the other jinchuuriki. Everyone agrees that I don't need to say how much action packed next chapter will be.

Take it easy!


	27. Decisive Battle

**Author Note**

Hi there everyone and welcome to the last chapter of 'the path of hunter-nin'.

Yeah, this is the last one of my most famous story yet, the first that will for sure reach the 1k review barrier. Before proceeding, though, I'd like to thank everyone for sticking up with my tardiness in posting the chapters of my stories. I know I didn't make it easy by creating a bunch of new stories and take even longer between updates. I have attempted to keep updating one story each week but it's not an easy feat to write 7.000 to 9.000 words and keeping up the originality in only seven days. Sure, had I nothing more to do then devote my time to fanfiction, it would be much faster, but hell, life isn't always perfect, right. With this story finished, I'll have still five more stories to devote my time. I'll create a sixth one, so check it out soon afterward this chapter. It will be Lone Wolf's sequel. I am coming up with some ideas for a completely original timeframe for our blond hero and his family. Of course, I'm open to ideas for plots including Naruto and his offspring as well.

Now, though, I'll focus all my energy and creativity in this last chapter as it will be strictly action packed.

Some of the writers may attest to this, but it is very hard to write an entire battle oriented chapter and still keep the time flowing.

I believe, though, that the ending will be to everyone's enjoyment. If not, though I'm sorry about it. I sincerely believe it will be very close to how he had acted till now. I'll keep the curiosity peeked until the end, I'm sure of it. I may be too modest for my own good, but I have a feeling that this chapter will be one of those that you keep repeating OMG…OMG….THAT'S SO F…., f….good or f…..awful. You'll be the judge of that.

* * *

**Chapter 27 – Decisive battle**

**Beta: Kyuubi123**

* * *

Two days ago, a large-scale battle between the alliance forces and the white zetsus took place. The battle was brutal and only ended due to a strange golden light that a few managed to conclude was caused by the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki. With that battle gone, now another was about to take place that certainly would surpass the previous one in power and carnage. On one side, was Uchiha Madara and Pein followed by seven jinchuuriki going from the Nibi to the Hachibi. The other side was the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki followed by the five kages and elite jounin of Konoha, Kumo and Iwagakure. Although the jinchuuriki were mere dolls, bodies used by Madara, they couldn't help but bring forward feelings of dread to those who knew them.

Onooki and Kizuki knew both Han and Roushi and were familiarized with their history. The Tsushikage felt a bit of remorse seeing as he didn't lift a finger to stop these two from being captured by the Akatsuki.

Mei observed Yagura and immediately remembered her fight with the jinchuuriki before taking the mantle of Mizukage. She knew Utakata only in passing.

The Raikage was fixing on both Yugito and Kirabi with a snarl on his face. In Yugito's case, A wasn't even aware of the organization's existence, but with Kirabi, he underestimated their boldness in invading his village a second time. Now, here he was facing the consequences of his misjudgment. The rest of the allied forces looked at the enemy with nothing more than determination as they analyzed the situation. Jiraiya was no doubt facing the enemy with the rinnegan, since it reminded him so much of Yahiko, an old student of his born in Amegakure. Tsunade was eyeing the rinnegan user as well, but also looking at the main enemy, Madara. She remembered one Uchiha Madara when she was a child playing in her grandfather's backward. Because of the mask, she couldn't recollect much. Naruto was focusing solely on Madara. No one knew it but the hunter-nin had activated senjutsu and his eyes were the same as a toad's.

Looking around the vicinity, Naruto was surprised when he felt another presence a couple miles away from his position. This feeling was similar to the one he felt from the six men with the same eyes.

"I'd have pictured this area to be clean of other threats, but it seems you have someone else hidden. Someone's chakra feels the same as Pein over there." A small silence reined after his declaration as everyone was focused on another threat. Pein, though, didn't take his eyes away from the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki. Madara for his part released a small chuckle at his comrade's misfortune. Who would have thought that someone would have been able to sense the real one from this distance.

"It seems that you managed to pinpoint my real location, Kyuubi. Too bad none of you will be able to reach that far." Jiraiya and Tsunade looked at each other and nodded briefly.

They would be pairing up against him and hopefully end it quickly. Even if there were six of them, Jiraiya and Tsunade could handle them. Naruto deactivated his senjutsu and smirked at the enemy in front of him. As a hunter ninja, he couldn't help but smile as he was now facing perhaps Konoha's oldest missing-nin. He could only imagine how thrilled his boss would be to face the man himself. Quickly activating the golden cloak around his body, Naruto wasted little time and charged at Madara while golden hands were busy performing hand seals.

_**Fuuton Kyoumou Shippu**__ (Wind Release: Fierce Hurricane Technique)_

Naruto vanished and reappeared in the middle of the opposing force before releasing the deadly technique consisting of a gigantic hurricane with slicing capabilities. The enemy immediately left the vicinity, not wanting to risk getting hit. When Naruto emerged from the crater he created, he was face to face with the swirling masked person. Stopping a while to inspect the enemy, Naruto realized both the sharingan and a different eye, similar to the others. Madara also had a strange shaped fan behind his back, which though the blond couldn't figure its use, didn't mean it wasn't any less dangerous. He needed to treat this man with extreme care, so imagining the fan to be useless would be sealing his fate.

"So foolish of you to believe you actually have what it takes to defeat me on your own, Naruto-kun. I would have imagined either Kakashi or Jiraiya to babysit you."

Naruto smirked at the obvious goal in making him attack without a plan in mind. How he fell for it when he was a kid was beyond him at this point.

"They are actually quite busy now, Madara. You shouldn't be so quick in underestimating me, though. A lot of powerful enemies have done that and pretty much all of them regrettred." Madara released a low chuckle in amusement as he saw Naruto utilizing speeds that reminded the Uchiha of fighting someone similar in the past. Naruto appeared in front of the masked man with his sword drawn and attacked him, but the sword passed through instantly. Naruto didn't stop the attack, though, and using his extra limbs, he attempted to strike from behind, with the same results. He saw Madara moving for the attack and managed to dodge the attack, before throwing a couple of shuriken with wind chakra surrounding them. Once more, the shuriken passed through Madara as if nothing happened. The opponent chuckled once more at the attempt.

"You have yet to realize how futile your attempts are." Madara gathered air inside his lungs while performing hand seals.

_**Katon Gouka Mekkyaku**__ (Fire Release: Great Fire Majestic Removal Technique)_

Naruto's eyes widened at the sheer size of the fire blast, but used his speed to get out of its range, before attacking once more, this time appearing behind Madara before the man realized it. Naruto focused a giant Rasengan with his two hands as well as four others. The watermelon sized energy ball passed through Madara as usual, before Naruto was grabbed by the neck by the enemy. The hunter-nin struggled with the man's firm grip, but at least he now knew Madara was corporeal. Using his golden limbs, Naruto managed to land a hit on Madara, pushing him away. A smile appeared on Naruto's face as he faced Madara once more.

"I think I'm beginning to understand your little technique, Madara. It's a matter of seconds, milliseconds even. In order for you to grab me, you had to change it instantly, huh? I need speed to beat you."

Madara was really amused at the pattern of fighting father and son.

_**(Spoiler Alert and also Author Note: In my story, Tobi is Madara even if manga 599 says differently).**_

"It took you long enough. Now that that's out of the way we can have some f…" Madara stopped talking once he saw a giant fireball coming at him. Naruto was already gone from his position. The fireball passed through him and exploded behind Madara. The Uchiha activated the eternal mangenkyou sharingan on his left eye and increased the speed of his movements. He met Naruto face to face and parried Naruto's sword with a kunai, surprising Naruto at the sudden change in speed. The blond realized the change in the sharingan and remembered seeing similar patterns on Itachi's eyes. That meant that this man was capable of using the same techniques. His instincts proved correct when he vanished from his position, only for the black fire of Ametarasu to appear. Naruto appeared a few meters back as he faced the man of two powerful doujutsu. Madara, suddenly, extended his hand and simply muttered two words.

_**Bansho Tenin**__ (All Creation Attraction Technique)_

Naruto was suddenly dragged back to the black flames and counted on his extra limbs to change his trajectory, before moving to the offensive once more.

As soon as he appeared right in front of Madara, he realized that the man had yet to lower his arm used on the first attack.

_**Shinra Tensei**__ (Divine Judgement Technique)_

Naruto was pushed by a powerful force away from Madara, before using his limbs to stop his flight. He looked at Madara and cursed the man. Not only did he need to attack at the right time, but now he needed to avoid the man's deadly attacks. So far, Naruto was severely outclassed, but he would find a way to stop him, of that he was sure. He just needed one good hit and he would be dealt with for good. So far, on the outside the man looked unbeatable, but on the inside, he was as fragile as any other human being.

* * *

**===With Jiraiya===**

Aside from Naruto's battle, two more areas were suffering from extreme damage. The possessed jinchuuriki were battling the kages aside from Tsunade and the elite jounin. The Six Peins were busy elsewhere fighting against Jiraiya and Tsunade. So far, the two sannin teammates knew very little about their opponents, even if they appeared to be handling the situation well. One of the enemies, they learned, was able to absorb ninjutsu. Jiraiya attested to that by seeing the man absorbing one of his fireballs. There was another who could fire missiles from his head, although they assumed it wasn't human. Tsunade even managed to pinpoint the most dangerous one after being sent flying because of a strange technique.

It was the one that looked like Yahiko.

"Jiraiya-sensei, it is useless to stand before a god. Neither you nor the Hokage can ever beat Pein."

Tsunade and Jiraiya looked at the six enemies, before the opponent with a large yellow hair waved through hand seals, before slamming both hands on the ground. A big ass rhino appeared instantly, forcing Jiraiya and Tsunade to do the same, summoning Gamabunta and Katsuyu to aid them. Jiraiya looked at his ex-student and sighed believing that talking now would be useless. He needed to defeat these bodies instantly and go look for the presence that Naruto felt. Now that he realized from his memory, the only rinnegan user wasn't Yahiko but Nagato. For some reason, he realized that Yahiko wouldn't have done anything to Nagato, so perhaps Nagato is still alive and is the presence that Naruto felt. He needed to verify what happened and because of this, he had no time to waste. Right now, his hands were full with Pein so he wouldn't be able to aid Naruto against Madara. He just hoped the boy would be okay.

Shouting for Gamabunta to stall the enemy, Jiraiya began the ritual necessary for calling his strongest toad summons.

* * *

**===Battle of the Jinchuuriki===**

As if one jinchuuriki was hard to beat, now the rest had to defeat seven.

Kizuki and the Tsushikage paired up against both Han and Houshi. The jinchuuriki were now using their first transformation, thus giving both elite shinobi quite the work out. The Tsushikage cursed his old age every second as he used his ability to fly to dodge the lava techniques of Houshi. Han was heavily suited for close-range combat so his every move was taijutsu oriented, which suited Kizuki just fine, seeing as he had the ability to augment his muscles by using doton ninjutsu. However, Kizuki was no jinchuuriki, thus he had to make every move count in this fight and face his opponent head on when he could avoid it. Darui and the Raikage were busy fending off both Kirabi and Yugito, who were also on their first transformation. Darui with his elemental kekkai genkai, was doing great in keeping Yugito busy, but he needed to conserve his chakra for the real deal.

The Raikage wasn't having said care and he was charging his brother head on just like he was used in doing when they sparred.

Mei was fending off against Yagura while Kakashi and Gai paired up against Fuu and Utakata. The worst part of all this mess was that each jinchuuriki had the sharingan and the rinnegan, meaning that they could expect the movements as well. To make matters even worse was the knowledge that the enemy still had a full transformation to use, meaning that any time now; the respective bijuu would appear and join the battle.

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

After testing the strength of the fan, Naruto was sent flying towards a mountain before crashing hard.

The boy snarled at Madara once more, before wiping some blood from his mouth. Seeing how the fight began and how it was now, Naruto was certain that he was on to how to defeat him. He was able to match Madara's speed, but at the last minute, the Uchiha would increase his chakra and escape, before using either one of the techniques supplied by the doujutsu. It was frustrating he realized. He knew he was close, but he also knew he had ways to go. After getting out of the rubble, he saw Madara surrounded by a black field of energy and protected by the strange skeleton figure. This creature happened to be one of the Mangenkyou Sharingan's techniques called Susanoo. The creature had the appearance of an old samurai with armor and a Pinocchio sized nose. The blond was already witness to the power behind that black gigantic sword. He needed to destroy that thing.

"I was indeed wrong in underestimating you Kyuubi Jinchuuriki." Madara said as he looked at the boy in front of him with extreme focus.

The boy's speed was surprisingly greater than his own, even matching the Yondaime's jutsu. Madara couldn't capture him with the Tsukyomi since he was synched with the Kyuubi. He wasn't able to use the ametarasu because Naruto had experience with the technique after seeing Itachi using it. Another annoying technique of his was the jutsu after jutsu that Naruto was throwing at him. At first, the boy would throw him a fire jutsu, which Madara would use his ability, allowing the technique to pass by him as if he wasn't there. The hunter ninja waited for the moment when Madara released his technique, before quickly casting a wind technique and exploding everything in a one mile radius. It may be considered reckless chakra waste, but it was a gamble that Naruto won by calculating the amount of times that Madara could use his ability. Madara could be untouchable for the amount of five minutes, before having to release the ability. Now, his body was badly burned and his Akatsuki robe was torn from all the cuts from Naruto's devastating move.

Whoever thought to create a gigantic tornado and add a grand fireball to the mix?

Naruto, for his turn, was having an inner debate with his partner in crime.

'_Damn, this guy is tough…' His consciousness was now at the place where Kurama used to be imprisoned; now the fox was out of the cage. _

"_**What did you expect from the person who controlled me just by looking? I can see, though, that you're still not using my power to its full potential, why is that?" **_

_Naruto was deep in thought as he looked at the beast. _

'_Your full power is my last resort. For me to use it, I must be sure that Madara is using the same amount as well. For now, half of the power is enough. I must find a way to penetrate that shield of his without using the bijuudama. Perhaps a full powered rasenshuriken might do the trick? I'll even add a second one for an extra punch.' Kurama snorted at the brat who seemed to mind very little about the carnage he had already caused by fighting Madara. However, who was the fox to say that seeing as he used to level mountains with his tails….Ah good times!_

In the outside world, Naruto cursed as he saw the creature preparing his sword strike once more. If he was hit by that thing, it would be the end for sure. Quickly summoning ten kage bunshin and sending them to different positions around the battlefield, he prepared himself for the onslaught. The creature created a slash of chakra by swinging its sword. The technique was perhaps the size of a mountain and it charged Naruto slicing everything in its path. The arc hit him dead on, but now Naruto managed to escape by simply replacing himself with one of the clones. The image he received from the bunshin was enough to make the hunter-nin flinch in worry. However, now was not the time to hesitate as the bunshins and the original prepared one rasenshuriken each, before throwing at the dark creature. Madara saw the nine disks of highly compressed wind chakra and snarled at this kid. Did he have to simply throw S-ranked ninjutsu as if they were nothing?

The shuriken shaped rasengan all hit Susanoo at the same time, forming a pillar of light towards the sky, before an incredibly sized dome engulfed the giant creature.

Madara was inside and could very well see the destructive power. His sharingan couldn't even count the amount of slashes and his chakra capacity was struggling in keeping the shield as strong as it should be. Contrary to many beliefs, the sharingan wasn't run by limitless energy. The Uchiha patriarch snarled when he saw the cracks starting to form around his presumably impenetrable defense technique. Then, many cracks started to appear and Madara no longer considered plausible to keep up the control over the Susanoo. Naruto did have the advantage as far as chakra was concerned. He used his time-space jutsu to get out of there before the rest of Naruto's technique finally penetrated Susanoo's shield and ripped him to shreds.

* * *

**===With Jiraiya===**

The fight against Pein was brutal and like Naruto's fight, the area was filled with fire and destruction.

The six enemies were now reduced to four. After Jiraiya activated sennin mode, he and his summons managed to understand how the enemy operated. They concluded that the bodies were connected somehow, since when Jiraiya attacked one from behind, the enemy would dodge without even acknowledging the pervert's position. The one with the large yellow hair was defeated by Tsunade's punch while Katsuyu used its acid to deal with the enemy's summons. The other one that was destroyed was the body with green spiked hair. Apparently, this one had the ability to revive the others. With him gone, now stood only Yahiko and three more. Pein observed his opponents and found himself baffled that they managed to destroy two of his bodies. Countless times he was able to slip behind one of them, but the other soon moved to defend, forcing the enemy to back off and retreat.

The sannin's teamwork was being displayed now.

Jiraiya moved through hand signs while his summons were busy gathering air inside their lungs. Jiraiya exhaled an oil beam, while the male toad on his right side used fire and the woman toad used wind. The joint attack consisted of a wave of highly flammable oil that would burn anything if it made contact. Once more, the one that seemed capable of absorbing ninjutsu jumped in front of the assault and stopped the technique. Because of him being busy with Jiraiya's technique, though, it left him open for Tsunade to use her agility and appear right behind his face. The body still managed to dodge the first punch, but Tsunade quickly followed with a kick with enough condensed chakra that the man's head was sent flying. The Hokage wasn't able to throw in a nasty remark before the Yahiko body appeared in front of her and extended his arm.

_**Shinra Tensei**__ (Divine Judgement Technique)_

Tsunade was sent flying with extreme force, before being stopped by Jiraiya. He could see the damage to Tsunade's body. Snarling at her amateurism, Tsunade released the seal in her forehead once more, before more markings appeared on her body and arm, healing the wounds quicker. Right now, the enemy was reduced to three and now the advantage in number wasn't so great. Also, aside from Yahiko, the other bodies weren't made for offensive. Their theory was proved wrong, however, when the one with a big smile on his face literally opened his head, before missiles were launched against the sannin. Tsunade was still busy recuperating from the wounds inflicted by Pein's technique. Jiraiya, thus, went through hand seals, before slamming both hands on the ground.

_**Doton Doryuheki**__ (Earth Release: Mud Wall Technique)_

The wall lifted just as the missiles came and managed to halt the blow. With sennin mode, Jiraiya's technique was stronger than the usual one, allowing it to withstand the damage. By this time, Tsunade had realized that Pein was taking advantage of her wounded state and moved out of harm's way. As soon as the wall crumbled, Jiraiya had already chosen the next in line to go and charged while gathering the rasengan. By the time he reached the one that launched the missile, the ball was easily ten times as big. The Yahiko body attempted to use his technique, but he was forced to dodge because Tsunade was close to him. Extending a metallic rod, the Yahiko body started attacking Tsunade while Jiraiya had slammed his super rasengan on his desired target, shattering what appeared to be a metallic body. Now only two remained, Yahiko and one with long straight red hair, which couldn't do any harm to them.

He saw Yahiko battling Tsunade, before trying the Shinra Tensei once more. Tsunade managed to jump just at the nick of time, before focusing chakra on her feet to smash the Yahiko body. With one more gone, Jiraiya swiftly moved to attack, before landing a senjutsu charged punch and dealing with the last Pein. After dealing with the pests, the sannin had inspected the bodies laid out in front of them, trying to find the real one. It was obvious by what they saw that none of these six were the real enemy. Plus, Jiraiya could now feel a small presence nearby. He had a slight feeling that Nagato was involved.

"I have to go see him, Tsunade." The woman nodded.

"Yeah, Naruto is fighting Madara…"

"Not Naruto…Nagato. I have a feeling that he's the one that was controlling these bodies. You go and help Naruto, I'll deal with Nagato."

Tsunade wanted to argue about that, but didn't.

"Don't take too long and be careful. He will be expecting your arrival." Jiraiya nodded, before seeing her rush after Naruto. He really wanted to go and help Naruto against Madara, but if he let Nagato escape, this war wouldn't be over. Not to mention that he felt responsible for Nagato's actions as it was Jiraiya who took sympathy on three orphans and offered to train them in the shinobi arts. Perhaps if he went back to Konoha with his teammates that day, none of these events would have happened. The pervert was punched by both his summons as they all knew when the sannin was acting all depressed and now just wasn't the time to mope about his choices in the past.

* * *

**===With Naruto===**

Both Naruto and Madara were looking at each other and from the state of their outfits and the number of bruises in their bodies, they were at a stalemate.

Madara's mask was broken in half as he considered his next step. Naruto seemed just as tired as he was, though unlike the jinchuuriki in front of him, Madara had no demon to fall back to. The ones he had, he chose to give the powers to the bodies so that he could fight all the opposition. Madara, this time, acknowledged that Naruto was perhaps too well versed in fighting the Sharingan to be caught by surprise. All of the Mangenkyou Techniques were proven useless against the kid and quite frankly it irritated the elder Uchiha. The Ametarasu was no good, since the kid was too damn fast and could dodge before the flames are casted. Madara even attempted Tsukyomi, but Naruto had broken the record for dispelling the most powerful genjutsu in little more than a second. Madara had the suspicion that Kyuubi had something to do with this.

Finally, Susanoo fell victim to the kid's wind rasengan technique.

Also, the technique supplied by the rinnegan weren't effective, because the kid was able to use his extra limbs to either reduce the impact from the shinra tensei or change his path when Madara attempted to attract him. Madara realized that perhaps the only way he could defeat someone as powerful as the Kyuubi was to unite the forces of the other bijuu under his command. So far, none of them were defeated, so Madara sent a mental command for all of them to return to his location. He didn't know what happened to Pein, so he assumed the battle was still in progress.

"I must commend you Uzumaki Naruto on holding your own as long as you have, but not even a beast such as Kyuubi is indestructible." Naruto narrowed his eyes at what the man was planning.

"Naruto…" Both Madara and Naruto turned to see Tsunade landing behind the jinchuuriki, before facing Madara by Naruto's side. Madara let out a simple snort at seeing the woman here once more.

"If you're alive, it means that Nagato has failed me. No matter, even if he hadn't, I would have still killed him at the end of this fight. For that I appreciate for yours and Jiraiya's help. The only downside in this is that Jiraiya is still alive. It doesn't matter, though, as everyone will die." No sooner had Madara spoken, six beasts landed behind him, causing a massive earthquake. Naruto could hear how angry Kyuubi was inside of him upon seeing the bijuu in front of him. The first beast Naruto laid his eyes on was a giant blue cat with two tails. The color blue wasn't fur like the Kyuubi's, but it was blue fire, instead. The Sanbi was right next to the Nibi and Naruto saw nothing but a giant turtle with three tails. The Yonbi was a big red furred monkey wearing a crown at the top of his head and four tails behind it. The Gobi took the form of a whale-horse hybrid. The Rokubi was a strange looking beast, looking more like an ice blue slug with six tails behind it. The two last demons and strongest behind Kyuubi, were the Shichibi and the Hachibi. The first being a giant and very intimidating beetle with six wings and a cerci counting seven tails total. Last, but not least, the Hachibi was a hybrid of a bull and an octopus with fists that resembles a human and eight tentacles working as legs.

Naruto felt a chill up his spine wondering how the hell the others managed to deal with such a large menace.

To ease his mind, all of them appeared behind Tsunade, some almost on the verge of unconsciousness and others deadly hurt, but alive.

"As you can see, Kyuubi Jinchuuriki, it's useless to resist the joint strength of all the bijuu. Not to mention that the power of the Ichibi is also against you. And now everything in a ten mile radius will be destroyed. I've grown tired of dealing with you all." As if responding to their master, all the bijuu suddenly opened their mouths and started gathering similarly looking balls of energy. The shinobi behind Naruto paled and wondered if they would be able to escape alive from the destruction that would soon follow. Naruto was merely looking at the demons in front of him as he heard Kyuubi's instructions in his mind.

"All of you must stay behind me at all costs." They looked at the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki who had his eyes closed, wondering if he had gone mad.

Suddenly, when his eyes opened, all of them instantly trembled at the sudden release of energy. Naruto's golden cloak had expanded to a golden overcoat of energy and a black ball in his stomach. The alliance was now sixty feet high and on top of a creature made of pure energy, shaped like a fox. It started to roar at the opposition, showing its defiance to their act against the most powerful of the bijuu. If it was destruction the enemy was after, then Naruto and Kyuubi would show them exactly what the word meant. When Kyuubi opened his mouth towards the air, he also started gathering the energy for a bijuudama. However, unlike the other bijuu, his was at least twice as big. Naruto was snarling as well as he was supplying the bijuudama with as much wind chakra as he could muster. Even if he had inhuman chakra supply, he was still human.

When the attacks collided, a bright light engulfed everything for at least an entire minute.

Naruto's protection lasted only until the collision, before everyone was sent flying towards distinct directions. When Tsunade rose from the debris, she saw the size of the hole created by the attacks. At least half of Konoha could be well placed inside of it. She couldn't see the end of it, though. One by one, of the alliance, rose from the debris. They all saw the bodies of the respective jinchuuriki on the other side of the hole on the ground, but no sign of either Madara or Naruto. It was Gai who saw a piece of the Akatsuki's cloak and quickly went to inspect. He found Madara on the ground, his legs separated from his upper body. As the others arrived, Gai stared at the man while silently wondering if everything he had done was justified; the amount of destruction, the number of lives that was lost due to one man's greed.

With the enemy dead and the bodies of the jinchuuriki secured for a proper burial, Tsunade and the rest remembered about the one that saved them all and managed to kill the enemy.

After a while, though, the fact that neither managed to find him or even sense his presence for that manner, had everyone dreading the fact that perhaps Naruto hadn't make it and was vaporized by the blast. It was at this moment that Jiraiya appeared looking frantic at the destruction before him. He looked at Tsunade who was kneeling on the ground sobbing. A sad nod from Kakashi was the only thing needed for Jiraiya to conclude, even if at the cost of his heart almost stopping from the pain that soon followed.

Naruto was dead.

* * *

**===One week after the battle===**

Konohagakure was filled with celebration as everyone, were celebrating the defeat of perhaps the most dangerous organization in the world and one that were almost able to destroy the very world they all came to love and cherish. Some weren't though, remembering about the ones that perished in the war. Today was a day for mourning above all things. From the entire village, though, only a selected few remembered the truth of what happened out there. Uzumaki Naruto, the one whom everyone seem to have forgotten even existed, sacrificed himself to defeat Madara and the Akatsuki once and for all. He was a true hero in the eyes of the few. Aside from the Inuzuka Clan to whom Naruto considered his family, the two sannin and Kakashi, the rest had forgotten that Naruto even existed. These selected individuals were located in selected locations around the village looking at the celebration, while wishing that their blond hero was among them now.

In the end, like his father, Naruto sacrificed himself for the greater good.

However, unlike Minato, who was worshipped and still is, Naruto's memory was long forgotten by now. Kakashi was in front of the memorial stone, as usual, going through the names of people there were important to him throughout his life. First it was Uchiha Obito, a brave comrade who sacrificed himself to save Kakashi from certain death at the last great ninja war. Second was Rin, who was declared missing in action ten years ago and last year was presumed dead. The third person was the man to whom Kakashi thought of like a second father, who sacrificed himself to stop Kyuubi and seal it inside the fourth person, his own son. Namikaze Naruto also sacrificed himself to get rid of Uchiha Madara once and for all.

Tsunade was inside her office next to Jiraiya, looking at the reports of the war. She may be facing the report, but her eyes were dulled, without much focus. No one could blame her, though. After what she had witnessed, there wasn't much out there for her anymore. Even if Naruto wasn't inside the village constantly, Tsunade couldn't imagine her life without the annoying hunter-nin. Jiraiya wasn't much better. It was the first time that Jiraiya didn't feel like conducting his research as it was his coping mechanism with pain from losing Minato, Sarutobi-sensei and now Naruto. The talk he had with Nagato and Konan did little to appease the feeling of responsibility he felt now. After he stopped Konan from attacking him, he had heard from Nagato that he hated Konoha because of the fact that Hanzou the Salamander had sided with Danzou to kill Yahiko a long time ago.

Jiraiya snarled at the old war hawk for what he did and vouched to look into this. Too bad that the old war hawk was dead now or he would march inside his old Root headquarters and demand answers.

The hidden villages, after the war was finished, had agreed to renovate the pact of neutrality first signed after the Third Great Ninja War. Tsunade at first attempted for a unity pact between villages, just like Naruto would have wanted, but it was a futile attempt. It just wasn't doable now that the threat was gone. In the end, though, it wasn't much different than before the war began. It was considered a victory in the sense that the new pact of neutrality allowed the villages to run co-op missions from time to time and that in the case that two different hidden villages faced each other on a mission, there would be no killing involved. While it was fragile, seeing as many situations may occur to bend said rules, it was better than before.

Inside the Inuzuka Clan residence, Tsume and Kiba were busy consoling the sobbing Hana. The dogs were there as well, doing the best they could.

However, neither had the resolve necessary to be strong for the woman that was carrying Naruto's child. Hana's triplets were there as well. Mangetsu was by Hana's side weeping along with her master for Naruto's death. Kiba and Tsume were patient with Hana shouting at them wishing to be left alone, before eventually complying with her request. Hana was at the garden alone looking at the skies hoping for a signal, when a smoke appeared by her side. Hana was shocked to see that it was a toad and it was wearing glasses. Opening its mouth, the toad placed a scroll on her hand. Hana quickly opened the scroll, hoping beyond hope that something happened that prevented Naruto's death.

As she read the scroll, a smile suddenly appeared on her face as she wrote a scroll of her own to give to the toad.

* * *

**===Unknown Location===**

Uzumaki Naruto, presumably declared dead, was busy adjusting his outfit as well as his mask. If there was any day he thanked the heavens for being manipulated by Mizuki a long time ago it was today. If not, he wouldn't have learned the kage bunshin technique and wouldn't have used it in the last moment to escape from the blast caused by the joint bijuudama. A part of Naruto believed it was better to just go to Konoha and take care of Hana and his soon to be son or daughter. However, the world was still filled with missing-nin, which meant that any day now; a new Akatsuki may rise once more. Naruto wouldn't have any of that, he needed to rid Konoha of traitors so that none of them hurt his precious ones.

He was alerted to the little toad's presence, before picking up Hana's scroll.

* * *

_Naruto-kun,_

_It fills my heart with joy hearing that you survived the fight. I don't know what I would do if you're truly dead. I understand that you must rid us from the criminals that are still at large and will be waiting eagerly for your return (so long as you keep sending me letters and meeting both me and your son/daughter from time to time). I look forward to the time when there won't be a need for you to be out there hunting missing-nin. So you can return and we can be a family once more. Like you requested, I'll tell Kakashi, Tsunade, Jiraiya, my mom and Kiba about the truth and ask them to keep quiet about it. Even if you didn't want them to know, I will tell. None of them deserve the amount of suffering they are going through. _

_I love you with all my life and I can't for our child to be born. _

_Be safe and return to me._

* * *

Naruto smirked behind his mask as he read the scroll. He was glad that Hana understood his concern and got up when a voice alerted him.

"Are you ready to resume your duties?"

Uzuki Gaeshi was behind his famous hunter-nin, before giving Naruto the updated bingo book. The blond just returned with a short nod.

"Then welcome back to Konohagakure's Hunter-nin Division."

* * *

**===Epilogue – 3 years later===**

Three years had passed since the major battle that took place between Akatsuki and the Alliance. Since then, the number of incidents between villages was thankfully reduced to a bare minimum. The ones that occurred were caused by nuke-nin, who happened to be killed just hours after creating the havoc in the first place. There was a major concern shared by the great five villages about what happened to the bijuus that were released because of the fight. The usual theory was that since they were made of energy, it wouldn't take long before they would reform somewhere else. The concern shared by the villages were put to rest when Tsunade came up with the idea to seal them in the same place that Naruto trained with Jiraiya, Yamato and the Mizukage. Once there, no beast would be able to escape. The Tsushikage was a bit reluctant about it, but conceded in the end.

The elemental nations thus reached a new era of prosperity similar to the one that followed after the first path of neutrality signed by the five kage.

In Konoha, not much had changed. Everyone of Naruto's graduation class was promoted to jounin and some even were assigned to genin teams. Uchiha Sasuke was released from custody by Tsunade's decree so long as his chakra capacity was limited for five years. By the end of the five years, a member of the Yamanaka Clan would scan his brain to see whether Sasuke is still a flight risk. If not, then his chakra would be released slowly until it was safe to give him all of it. Surprisingly so, Sasuke was at ease now that Uchiha Itachi wasn't among the living. As such, he became more socially open to others around him, even surprising everyone when he was seen dating a stranger kunoichi jounin. Haruno Sakura was angered by this, but it didn't bother Sasuke. The rest was living their merry lives doing missions for the village and in some cases, spending time with their loved ones. After the war, a good number of couples were formed.

Tsunade finally relented to Jiraiya's hints and accepted to be his wife.

Tenten and Neji also got married. The ceremony was conducted by Hiashi with the entire clan present.

Mitarashi Anko had practically raped Iruka once and surprisingly so, the man enjoyed it. They got engaged one month later and Anko was even expecting her son.

Yamanaka Ino had asked Chouji for a date once and they hit it off instantly. They were now wondering if they should declare to the world as boyfriend and girlfriend.

Shikamaru is still single, though because the last dates he had were way too troublesome to handle. Same with Lee, though he was the one girls thought too troublesome to handle. Some say that he is only focused on getting Sakura for a date now.

Kiba and Hinata had agreed one time to be each other's backup if none of them found anyone by the end of the three years. Since neither had found anyone, they were a couple now.

Shino ended up marrying within the clan.

Kakashi and Gai remained single until now, although there was a rumor that Kakashi and Shizune were last seen drinking together. Kurenai had Asuma's child and was happy on her own. Currently, she was inside the Inuzuka Clan, along with Hana and her son Inuzuka Minato. Kurenai was among the few, counting Kakashi, Tsunade and Jiraiya, that knew of the truth about Naruto's situation. Minato was a beautiful child, blond hair and blue eyes just like his father. The Inuzuka's birth mark was clear below his eyes, similar to his mother and if one would pay close attention to his cheeks, one would be able to notice the faint outlines of Naruto's whisker marks. Right now, young Minato was busy playing with the Haimaru triplets and a small gray pup, Mangetsu's and Kuromaru's. The kid was a bundle of energy just like his father and even managed to tire the dogs, earning giggles from the boy's mother upon seeing the loose tongues begging for water.

While looking at her bundle of joy, the woman couldn't be happier as today happened to be the day that her lover and Minato's father would come back from his journey.

* * *

**===At the gates===**

Naruto appeared in front of the gates with his usual black uniform, but with a few additions. Strapped around his neck was a red scarf similar to Konohamaru's blue one. Also, like Jiraiya, Naruto had a giant scroll strapped on his waist. Inside of the scroll, were proof of his kills thus cleaning the bingo book, at least the last one he received from his boss three years ago that contained nuke-nins from all over the elemental nations. The ones from outside Konoha, Naruto had already cashed in and received the bounty. As he stepped inside the village, Naruto realized how much time passed since the fated battle and wondered how his loved ones were doing.

'_I can't believe it's been three years already…time flies when we're having fun hunting missing-nins.' _

"_**It does indeed…though I'm still baffled by how long it took for you to defeat that last missing-nin from Konoha. You managed to defeat Uchiha Madara and managed to come up with a wind technique that surpasses the Yondaime in speed, but you take more than a minute to defeat a low-class chunnin that shouldn't even have become a shinobi in the first place."**__ Before Naruto had a chance to retort, the fox continued. __**"And before you say he was one of your classmates in the academy; don't bother trying to explain yourself. You could have finished the man off before he even realized that someone was there, but no…you wanted to give him one thousand chances to surrender.**_

'_The guy happened to be a known acquaintance, ok. He was just so bad that I felt pity on him. You don't have to mope about bearing with weak containers every god damn time.' _

"_**If you do this one more time, I will. Now go meet your family and be gone from my sight."**_

'_Yes, boss'. _With a smile beneath his mask at his companion, Naruto instantly vanished from his usual position, leaving only a small breeze where he once stood. To those around, it was nothing but a blur.

The now fully grown hunter-nin stood inside the Inuzuka Clan, surprising Hana and Kurenai.

Hana didn't waste time, though and jumped at her lover at finally seeing him. When she took away his mask, she smiled upon seeing the look in his eyes upon seeing her after such a long time. There was little need for words since they exchanged letters all the time. Naruto was now home and things would be different from now on. The hunter-nin was surprised when he looked down and saw big blue orbs looking at him with a confused expression on his face. Inuzuka Minato was considered very bright for his age and already appeared to connect the dots. Naruto smiled at his son and kneeled down next to him.

"Hello Minato-kun, do you know who I am?" The small blond took a while, before remembering a picture that his mom showed him.

"…Tou-san…is it really you?" Naruto nodded with a smile on his face. Minato responded with a bright smile on his face before rushing to hug his father.

Hana and Kurenai were smiling at the scene. Inside the house, the matriarch Tsume was also showing a smile as her family was now complete once more. She was happy that her son-in-law came back to her daughter safe. When Hana mentioned about Naruto's plan, Tsume was first concerned about it. However, after realizing that Naruto was perhaps the strongest shinobi in Konoha, or even the elemental nations, she figured that there wasn't a man that was able to kill him. She stepped in the garden and greeted the blond with a hug, before looking at the scroll on his back.

"So…did you manage to do what you set out to do?" Naruto smirked and picked his scroll before placing it on the ground.

"Yeah…the bingo book is now non-existent."

Tsume smirked at that, showing her pride in hunting just as Naruto did. "I should deliver the ones from Konoha to the Hokage, but not before spending a great load of time with this little one here." Naruto said, before grabbing Minato and lifting him in the air. The kid's laughter washing away the entire burden that Naruto incorporated as his own, because of his kills. After playing a while with his son, Naruto took the sleeping Minato back inside the compound and placed him inside the kid's room along with Mangetsu, who by the way just wouldn't leave his side. The hunter-ninja smiled at his dog companion and caressed her ears, earning a fund snort from the dog and an angry one from the fox inside of him. Both behaviors filled his life with joy. He met Tsume, Hana and Kurenai having some coffee in the kitchen and took a seat by his girlfriend.

"So…what are you talking about?" Hana smirked and responded.

"We were all wondering what you would do now that your job as a hunter-ninja is no longer required." Surprisingly so, all three took a zip of coffee at the same time as all three stared at the blond for an answer.

"The only real path for me, now, is Anbu I'm afraid." By the look on their faces, they expected a different answer. "As far as everyone is concerned, I'm no longer among the living, thus the mask will be forever covering my identity. Anyway, I'll be discussing this today with the Hokage, but besides Anbu, both regular jounin and even being a genin team sensei is out of the question. At least until my real story is out in the open." Hana and Kurenai were expecting him to take on a team or do high level missions, but Tsume was the only one that agreed with her son-in-law. She didn't see any reason why her daughter would wish for perhaps the strongest ninja in the world to be out in the open, meeting with her daughter and their child.

"It is indeed the best course of action, Naruto. Besides, it's not like you wish to be seen by others aside from those who knew your real story, huh." Naruto smirked at the comment and nodded.

"So true…well, I believe it's wise to go now and meet Tsunade. Ah Tsume-san, would it be okay if I lived here from now on? I know both Hana-chan and Minato-kun will be living here…"

With a smile shared by Hana, Tsume interrupted the hunter ninja and explained.

"Actually, since you and my daughter pretty much destroyed her room three years ago; we had a new one built for the two of you."

Naruto smiled in appreciation, before saluting the girls just like Kakashi. The women were startled when Naruto simply wasn't there anymore and they felt a small breeze inside the room. Hana, Tsume and even Mangetsu who was waiting for Naruto outside the kitchen were surprised as they couldn't sense the blond's scent anywhere. There wasn't a shunshin, since the technique only covered small distances. They were all baffled and Kurenai even believed for a moment that she was seeing hallucinations.

* * *

**===At the Hokage's Office===**

Tsunade was busy doing her paperwork when she tensed suddenly. She saw one of the papers in her desk lift slightly because of the breeze that assaulted her office, but frowned because the windows were closed. When she looked up her desk, she was surprised to see a person there wearing black leather clothes and a red scarf around his neck. She saw the mask and smiled fondly at the boy who came to greet her. According to Hana, it was today.

"I'm glad you came back from your little trip, brat. You had me worried there for a moment."

"I wasn't expecting to take this long. A couple of A-ranked missing-nins were really good at hiding. I even recollect a certain Aburame missing-nin that used his bugs to create a bunshin on the opposite side of town of the actual clan member so that no one would know where he went, sneaky that guy. Too bad women in general had a dislike for insects and screamed when the clan member was suddenly dissolved. After two months chasing the guy, it took me two minutes to deal with him because of this." Tsunade looked at the hunter ninja and wondered why the hell he was sharing his adventures with her in the first place. She had never chatted with a hunter ninja before and now that she had, she just wasn't interested in much else.

"That's nice…I know that the big scroll behind you is the results of your efforts, so don't even bother to open up in front of me." Naruto smiled at that. She just didn't want to watch the heads rolling.

"I'll be delivering to the headquarters right after I leave from here. Now, with the bingo book cleaned up, I was wondering about the future and your plans for me." Tsunade nodded and pushed her chair back a bit in order to relax as she eyed the shinobi in front of her with a smile on her face. Her every wish was for the brat to take on regular jounin assignments with an elite jounin squad. However, with Naruto's supposed death, giving him any position that didn't require using a mask was ill advised. It took her five seconds to realize that someone had petitioned her for a new spot in the Anbu forces, Assassination Squad. Come to think of it, the leader of the squad was one to whom Naruto knew very well.

"Well, since you're not supposed to be alive, I know as well as you do that the only possible job for you is Anbu." Naruto nodded and Tsunade continued. "As a matter of fact, a spot had opened up in a unit I believe you'll fit right in. This unit is mainly assassination but is also equipped for first response team as well." Tsunade grabbed the petition and placed his name in it, before handling to Naruto. "In this scroll are the coordinates of your new assignment. Once there, ask for the unit captain and deliver the scroll for him." Naruto nodded and grabbed the petition handled by Tsunade. "Welcome to the Anbu forces, brat. I look forward to hearing from you once more."

"Thanks and say hi to Jiraiya for me, will ya?"

Naruto said, before leaving like he arrived…with no trace whatsoever. He saw the name of the one who signed the petition and smiled at having an Aburame as his new boss, especially one he knew.

* * *

**Author Note**

Oh my god…it took a while to finish this chapter, but it was necessary. I couldn't postpone it any longer.

I bet some of you were surprised in the middle when Naruto was killed along with Madara, right. Yeah, I thought of what a major finale would be like and I came up with the idea of Naruto finding a way to resume his duties as a hunter-nin. I would like to thank everyone for sticking up with me and hopefully raising the review bar to 1000 reviews. It will be my first one to reach that high. I also wanted to thank my beta **Kyuubi123** for his splendid job fixing my grammar mistakes.

Thank you all once more.

Lastly, I wish to comment on a recent move on Kishimoto's part, assuming that what happened in Manga 599 is the truth. Spoiler alert, so brace yourselves. Tobi is in fact Uchiha Obito. First of all, the man is barely Kakashi's age. How the hell could he be a grown-up by the time the masked man fought the Yondaime Hokage? The same applies to all the events that Tobi is mentioned. Giving Nagato the rinnegan; convincing Yahiko to create Akatsuki…all of these events happened at the second great ninja war. I believed that Obito wasn't even born when it happened. Unless, everything we were told until now it's a lie, same as when the masked man presented himself as Madara at the Kage Summit. There is also a third possibility. When Kakashi asked the masked man where he got the sharingan eye, Tobi answered that he found it at the same place that Obito was killed. Oh man, it can't possibly be Obito. The facts don't match. Tobi would have to be older than Obito.

I guess we'll find out the truth when Manga 600 comes out next week, huh!

See ya.


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